African Americans served with bravery and distinction in every conflict since the American Revolution. Yet the stories of these heroes have been consistently omitted from our collective memory. From the now-famed Tuskegee airmen to the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion, D-Day’s only all-Black combat unit, modern historians have been tasked with setting the record straight. 

As we approach the 80th anniversary of D-Day, join the author of Forgotten: The Untold Story of D-Day’s Black Heroes, Linda Hervieux, and Commissioner of the American Battle Monuments Commission Raymond Kemp as they discuss the achievements of the more than one million African American men and women who served in uniform during World War II.

About the speakers:

Linda Hervieux is a Paris-based American journalist and teacher who has lectured extensively about the forgotten African Americans of D-Day and World War II at venues including Harvard, Princeton, and the National African American Museum of History and Culture in Washington, D.C. The men of Forgotten will be featured in an episode of the upcoming National Geographic/Disney+ series Erased: WW2’s Heroes of Color.

Raymond D. Kemp, Sr., was appointed by President Biden to the American Battle Monuments Commission. During a 33-year career in the U.S. Navy, Kemp served as the first Black Fleet Master Chief for the U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Africa. He is the CEO of Kemp Solutions, a best-selling author, and executive coach.

Learn more:

Tom Brokaw calls Linda’s book “utterly compelling,” and best-selling historian Douglas Brinkley writes, “All Americans should read this World War II history, which doubles as a civil rights primer, to learn the true cost of freedom.”

Important information: The discussion will be available both online and in person. While the conversation will happen in person (the speakers will appear in the Reading Room), the Library will stream the conversation on Zoom for a live viewing experience. Both in-person and online attendees will be able to pose questions.

Attendance at this event constitutes permission for your photograph or video to be taken at the event and used by the American Library in Paris for marketing, promotional, pedagogical, or other purposes.

Read along with the Library! If you want to prepare ahead of this event, copies of Forgotten will be on sale one week in advance, as well as after the event. Stop by Member Services to purchase your copy. Books are generously provided by Smith&Son.

Attendees will have the opportunity to have their copy signed following the conversation.