Photo By Marcy Sanchez | Charles Taylor (left), a Buffalo Soldier re-enactor and retired command sergeant...... read more read more
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FORT BLISS, Texas - Soldiers and staff at William Beaumont Army Medical Center received a special performance from Charles Taylor, Jr., a Buffalo Soldier re-enactor and retired command sergeant major, during a Black History Month observance at WBAMC, Feb. 17.
Taylor, an El Paso native, brought to life Buffalo Soldiers to educate the WBAMC community on the service of black Soldiers in the Army.
The Buffalo Soldiers were all-black regiments during the Indian Wars of the late 1800s. The units were nicknamed “Buffalo Soldiers” by the Native-American tribes they fought during the wars.
Taylor came about re-enacting Buffalo Soldiers after opening a restaurant in El Paso named “Buffalo Soldiers’ BBQ.” Many patrons would ask Taylor about the Buffalo Soldiers so he took it upon himself to learn more about the exclusive units.
“I didn’t know anything about the Buffalo Soldiers, so I started researching,” said Taylor.
His research turned into a 27-year-long endeavor to educate the public on Buffalo Soldiers.
“I started re-enacting in 1989,” said Taylor. “I’ve been on Billboards for the El Paso Museum of History, and posed for statues in various places around the city.”
Taylor’s lively re-enactment encompassed information on influential individuals such as Harriet Tubman, an African-American Union spy who helped free countless slaves.
“For a lot of people, this is probably the first time they heard the information from today,” said Staff Sgt. Crystal Garcia, equal opportunity leader, Company C, Troop Command, WBAMC. “The re-enactment is a broader perspective of history and the key roles that everyone has played.”
In 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed Executive Order 9981 which abolished segregated units in the Armed Forces, although the last all-black unit wasn’t integrated until 1954.
“That order initiated the momentum to get America thinking about change,” said Taylor. “Keep progressing. We should not be at each other’s throats about race.”
“It’s important to recognize the accomplishments of everybody throughout history,” said Garcia. “Many people played a pivotal role throughout history to get us to where we are today.”
| Date Taken: | 02.25.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 02.25.2016 11:33 |
| Story ID: | 190069 |
| Location: | FORT BLISS, TX, US |
| Hometown: | EL PASO, TX, US |
| Web Views: | 178 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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