by Don Keelan
Over the past 20-plus years of writing a bi-weekly column, I have tried not to interject personal experiences. Additionally, please forgive me for not submitting my last column. However, it was necessary and personal.
I decided to attend my 65th Marine Corps reunion, specifically honoring those Marines who, over the past 70 years, were stationed at the Marine Barracks in Washington, DC.
The Barracks is a unique place, a distinction that has endured since President Thomas Jefferson selected the location in 1801. The Marine Corps, officially only three years old at the time, was created through an Act of Congress in 1798. Jefferson chose a location so Marines could easily access the Nation’s Capitol grounds, roughly eight city blocks away. A little history lesson: The Marines recognize November 10, 1775, as their founding day at Tun Tavern, in Philadelphia, PA. A huge celebration will be held there this fall for the Corps’ 250th Anniversary.
The Barracks’ uniqueness can be attributed to the official residence of the Commandant of the Marine Corps, which sits at one end of the Barracks and is one of Washington’s oldest buildings, spared from destruction by the British in 1812. At the other end of the rectangular property with a parade field in the center is the home of the United States Marine Band, known as “The President’s Own.” One of the band’s great leaders, John Phillip Sousa, grew up near the Barracks. Along with the band is the Marine Silent Drill Platoon, the Drum and Bugle Corps, and the Color Guard.
The above Marines are tasked with ceremonial duties within Washington DC, including Arlington National Cemetery and, at times, throughout the country. Except for the Marine Band, the force, along with several hundred other Marines, provides security at the Presidential Retreat, Camp David, the Blair House, the White House, and other locations when called upon to assist.
One of the events our reunion group attends is the Friday Evening Parade that takes place at the Barracks from May until late August. The military event (military tattoo would be its British reference) is free to the public by reservation for the 4,000 seats and has been since July 1957.
This has not changed since I reported for duty at the Barracks in the fall of 1957. What has changed is the group of Marines we witnessed participating in the 90-minute performance.
It was a delight to see Colonel Carrie Batson, the commanding officer of the Barracks. She is the first female to have ever held the position, and it was long overdue. Another first was younger female officers leading two of the six platoons, each comprising of 24 Marines.
Several decades ago, the Barracks appointed Black Marine officers to similar positions. For those of us stationed there in the late 1950s, this was not the case. At that time, Washington, DC and much of the South were segregated. I enlisted in the Marines from Mt.Vernon, NY, next to the Bronx. Witnessing segregation first-hand was a life-changing experience.
In the 1950s, the Armed Forces were attempting, ever so slowly, to integrate their ranks; the Marines were even slower. My platoon of 24 included four Black Marines, a first for the Barracks. Life was not easy for them. When traveling to Camp David, they had to stay on the Marine bus when we stopped for sandwiches at a Maryland diner. The diner’s sign was clear: “Whites Only.” In any Silent Drill performance south of Virginia, our platoon’s four Black Marines were replaced by four white Marines from another platoon.
Our reunion dinner the following evening included the keynote speaker, Lt. General Ronald Bailey (Ret.). The Black three-star general, one of the Marines’ first, was given a warm reception.
It was hard for me to concentrate on his remarks. I was off recapturing how life was in 1957 in the Corps, in Washington, and as a country. Unfortunately, I am still using the phrase ‘the first time.’ Much progress has been achieved over the past six decades in addressing discrimination, but as a nation, we cannot say it is behind us.
The author is a U.S. Marine (retired), CPA, and columnist living in Arlington, VT.