The Black Death, the man who feared nobody, 1918

Henry Johnson was an African American soldier during World War I. Johnson joined the 369th Infantry Division in 1917, which was based in Harlem, New York City. Harlem is an area in New York, which is famous for its African American culture. The 369th Division was made up entirely of African Americans, as the US Army was racially segregated at the time. Black soldiers in the US Army were often poorly treated when they arrived in Europe. Many of these soldiers served as laborers rather than fighters and were abused by officers. However, the French army did not racially segregate soldiers and France did not have a racist culture like America, so black soldiers often were under the leadership of the French high command as they were treated better. Johnson went to France in 1918 and was assigned to Outpost 20, which was at the edge of the Argonne forest in the champagne region. On the night of May 18th, Johnson and a comrade were ambushed by a German attack squad. Johnson began to shoot at his attackers, however, his rifle jammed. Johnson, who was determined to prove his worth and fueled with courage, stood his ground. He used his rifle butt, a bolo knife, his bare fists, and grenades to defend his position. When backup arrived to help Johnson, they found that he had killed 4 German troops, as well as wounded many others. Johnson himself suffered 21 wounds. He then earned the nickname “The Black Death” or “The Harlem Terminator”. Johnson survived the ordeal and went back to the USA and went to public speeches and exposed the abuse that took place in the US Army. As he was black, the US would not give him the Medal of Honor, the highest military award for bravery. Instead, he got the French Equivalent, the Croix de Guerre. He was the first US soldier to receive it. Johnson died in 1927 due to Tuberculosis and was somewhat forgotten. He was posthumously given the Medal of Honor by then-US President Barack Obama in 2015. The 369th Division played a vital role in the war.  They spent 191 days in combat. They were so brave and fierce, that the Germans gave them the nickname “The Harlem Hell fighters".