The SixTripleEight: No Mail, Low Morale is a documentary film which premiered in 2019. In March 2024, it was shown on US television (PBS).
The topic of this film is the story of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion which was active towards the end of World War II (1945-1946).
The Six Triple Eight, which had 855 members, was the only predominantly African American female battalion to serve in the US Army in Europe during World War II.
Here is some basic information about this film:
** Writer and director: James W. Theres
** Production: Lincoln Penny Films
** Language: English
** Subtitles: English
** Run time: 72 minutes
In February 1945, 855 women, mostly African Americans, were transported to Europe.
The first destination was England, where they worked in Birmingham.
The second destination was France where they worked in Rouen and Paris.
What was the task? They were postal workers. They had to deal with a backlog of mail which had been piling up for two years (since 1943).
Around 17 million items had to be sorted and delivered to the right person or institution.
The unit was expected to complete this task in six months. It was completed in three months!
The members were divided into three groups. They worked in three shifts. Eight hours for each shift. They worked 24 hours a day and seven days a week.
The members of the unit assumed that getting the mail
out was good for the morale of the army. This is why the unit adopted the
slogan:
“No Mail, Low Morale”
They worked in Birmingham for three months:
March, April and May.
In June, the unit was transferred to France where they conducted a similar operation in two locations:
** Rouen
** Paris
A large backlog of mail was sorted and delivered.
Black units in the US Army were usually under the command of a white officer. But this was not the case here. The Six Triple Eight Battalion was under the command of a black woman:
Charity Adams
(1918-2002)
She was an officer in the US Army, even though she was a woman and even though she was black. There were not many cases like this.
While the members of this unit were working in the UK, they realised that they had more freedom than they had in their own country.
In the US, racial segregation was everywhere. Not only in the South but also in the North. An African American woman could not enter any restaurant or any club.
But when she was in the UK, there was no racial segregation. She was allowed to enter any restaurant and any club.
The members of this unit had the same experience when they came to France. There was no racial segregation in France.
In 1946, when the task had been completed, they were transported back to the US and the unit was disbanded. The members were told to go home. It was as if the postal battalion had never existed.
The members of this unit had made an important contribution to the war effort, but once they were back in the US, this fact was soon forgotten.
After many years, the case was re-discovered and some people began to study the experience of this unit.
Fortunately, some members were still alive at that time. They were interviewed on camera. Their memories were recorded for posterity.
In November 2018, a monument for the Six Triple Eight Battalion was dedicated at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas.
The monument is decorated with several plaques which offer information about the postal unit. A 25-inch bust of Charity Adams is placed of top of the monument.
In March 2022, the Congressional Gold Medal was awarded to the members of the Women's Army Corps 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.
Obviously, this detail is not mentioned in the film which premiered in 2019.
Perhaps members of Congress were prepared to award this medal to the 6888, because this film had prepared the ground for an official recognition of the postal unit.
In this film, the story of the 6888 is told by many different persons who offer a statement on camera. These persons can be divided into three categories:
# 1. Former members of the unit
# 2. Family members
# 3. Other people who have studied the case
Some statements were recorded many years ago. They are marked with a message to say when they were recorded. For instance, 1990.
Other statements are not marked with a message. Perhaps they were recorded by the director in 2018?
Some statements are sharp and clear. Other statements are neither sharp nor clear.
Some statements are very informative. Others are not very informative.
There is a problem here.
I am going to illustrate this problem by focusing on a short clip which appears at the end of the film.
In this clip we see and hear the First Lady Michelle Obama who is giving a public speech.
A banner which is visible says “Women in the military.” This must be the topic of her speech.
But where did she give her speech? And when was it given? There is no information!
In the speech, Michelle Obama mentions two former members of the Six Triple Eight by name: Mary Ragland and Alyce Dixon. She says they are in the audience.
Then there is some applause and the clip comes to an end. But what about the two former members of the unit? We never see them!
Why not?
The director shows us a clip where two former members of the unit are mentioned by name by the First Lady. We are told they are present in the audience, but we never see them!
This is very odd!
When I tried to investigate this historical moment, it was not difficult to find some information about this case.
When I googled Michelle Obama and the names of the two former members of the unit, I found a photo which was taken on 03 March 2009.
This photo shows four persons.
From left to right we have:
** Mary Ragland (1922-2010)
** Alyce Dixon (1907-2016)
** Michelle Obama
(born 1964) the first lady
** Esther Corcoran (1905-2010)
I also found an article posted by the Columbus Dispatch on 03 March 2009. The headline says:
“First Lady recognizes women in the military.”
According to this article, Michelle Obama gave a speech about women in the military at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, DC.
Why is this information not mentioned in the film? Why is the photo which is available on the internet not shown in the film?
The story of the female postal battalion is interesting and important. It deserves to be told. I wish I could say: in this film, it is done very well. But I cannot say that.
In this film, the story of the Six triple Eight is not told very well. I am disappointed. I am also puzzled.
James W. Theres is the writer and director of The Hello Girls which premiered in 2018. This film is about a somewhat similar case:
The Hello Girls were a unit of female telephone operators who worked for the US Army in France during the time of WWI (1918-1920).
This film is great. This film is well done. James Theres did a great job with the Hello Girls. Why could he not do the same with the Six Triple Eight?
This film about the Six Triple Eight is neither great nor good. It is average.
** Great means five stars = 100 percent
** Good means four stars = 80 percent
** Average means three stars = 60 percent
Sadly, this film cannot get more than three stars.
It deserves a rating of 60 percent.
REFERENCES
# 1. Items available online
Kevin M. Hymell
“WAC Corporal Lena Derriecott and the 6888th Central Postal Battalion,”
WWII History Magazine
February 2019
[Tyler Perry’s historical drama about the Six Triple Eight is based on this item]
Jennie Rothenberg Gritz
“How an all-black female WWII unit saved morale on the battlefield,”
Smithsonian Magazine
March 2023
Oprah Flash and Amy Johnston
“Six Triple Eight: The battalion of black women erased from history,”
BBC News
05 July 2023
# 2. Tyler Perry, Netflix, and the Six Triple Eight
Mia Galuppo
“Movie Six Triple Eight at Netflix,”
The Hollywood Reporter
14 December 2022
Angelique Jackson
“Tyler Perry, Kerry Washington Share First Look at Netflix World War II Film Six Triple Eight,”
Variety
26 February 2023
Kate Bove
“Netflix’s Big New War Movie is Doing Something the Genre Almost Always Overlooks,”
Screen Rant
05 February 2024
# 3. Books
One Woman’s Army:
A Black Officer Remembers the WAC
By Charity Adams Earley
(1989)
The Courageous Six Triple Eight:
The All-Black Female Battalion of World War II
By Artikas R. Tyner
(2022)
[This slim volume is for young readers]
No Better Time: A Novel of the Spirited Women of the Six Triple Eight Central Postal Battalion
By Sheila Williams
(2024)
*****
Charity Adams Earley
(1918-2002)
The commanding officer of the
Six Triple Eight
Postal Battalion
*****
The monument erected to honor the
Six Triple Eight Postal Battalion
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
(2018)
*****
The monument is decorated with several plaques
which offer information
about the postal battalion.
A 25-inch bust of Charity Adams
is placed on top of the monument.
I wonder who approved this design.
The commander of the 6888 has been cut in half.
This is not right!
The monument should be altered.
The bust should be removed.
A full statue of Charity Adams
should be placed next to the monument.
This would be a much better way to honor
Charity Adams and the unit
which was under her command.
*****
A historical moment in March 2009
Arlington National Cemetery
From the left:
Mary Ragland
Alyce Dixon
Michelle Obama
Esther Corcoran
*****
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