The Contemporary Impact of Black G.I.s in Europe in WWII

Abstract: Can attitudes towards minorities, an important cultural trait, be changed? We show that the presence of African American soldiers in the U.K. during World War II reduced anti-minority prejudice, a result of the positive interactions which took place between soldiers and the local population. The change has been persistent: in locations in which more African American soldiers were posted there are fewer members of and voters for the U.K.’s leading far-right party, less implicit bias against blacks and fewer individuals professing racial prejudice, all measured around 2010. Our results point towards intergenerational transmission from parents to children as the most likely explanation.

from a new paper by David Schindler and Mark Westcott in ReStud. Black GI’s also experienced a society with much less segregation than in the United States.

Mixed race couples dancing in a London club, 1943. Original Publication: Picture Post – 1486 – Inside London’s Coloured Clubs – pub. 1943 (Photo by Felix Man/Picture Post/Getty Images)

Mixed race couples dancing in a London club, 1943. Original Publication: Picture Post – 1486 – Inside London’s Coloured Clubs – pub. 1943 (Photo by Felix Man/Picture Post/Getty Images)

From this review.

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