Brown, Myers; Johnson, Ahnekii

Description

In part one of this two-part interview, Mortimer Cox describes his experiences as a black Marine in the Pacific during World War II. He discusses the reasons why he chose the Marines, having enlisted in the Corps as one of the first black Marines and describes the extraordinary lengths they had to go to to prove themselves. He recalls his encounters with prejudice and eventual acceptance.Mortimer Cox was a Marine in the Pacific during World War II.MORTIMER COX VETERANS HISTORY INTERVIEW Atlanta History Center July 26, 1999 Interviewer: Myers Brown Transcriber: Stephanie McKinnell TAPE 1 of 2 Myers Brown: . . . full name, and date of birth, and place of birth, just some general information now. Mortimer Cox: All right, I'm Mortimer Augustus Cox. Why they named me that, I'll never know. I was born April 15,1919, in Birmingham, Alabama. MB: When did you first move here to the Atlanta area? MC: I moved to Atlanta June of 1946, September of 1946. I had decided to use my GI Bill for college education. It's interesting how I selected—everybody asks me why did you select Atlanta and why did you select Morris Brown College as school. I'm a son of a coal miner in the steel mills of Birmingham. Returning from the war and my experience in the Marine Corps said to me that—while my parents could not afford me the privilege of college, I graduated from high school in 1937. Knowing that I had the opportunity to utilize the...

Record Contributed By

Atlanta History Center

Record Harvested From

Digital Library of Georgia