On July 28, 1948, President Harry S Truman signed Executive Order 9981 mandating “equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin” and ordered the policy implemented “as rapidly as possible, having due regard to the time required to effectuate any necessary changes without impairing efficiency or morale.”

The ambiguous language of Executive Order 9981 was carefully chosen amid the racially-charged politics of an election year. The Order neither mentioned the term desegregation nor dictated when each military service ought to achieve racial equality.

As a result, desegregation proceeded slowly and inconsistently and because of their small numbers, African American servicewomen serving during the Korean War era were often the first and, sometimes, the only to train, command, work and live in desegregated settings.