From the GI Bill to reparations: The next Congress must right a history of injustice

This Veteran's Day, as parades march and flags wave, I’m reminded of a shameful truth in American history: nearly 1 million Black World War II veterans were denied the post-war spoils of the G.I. Bill.

Officially known as the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act of 1944, the program provided life-changing education and housing benefits, catapulting countless families into the middle class. However, the intentional exclusion of Black veterans left them and their families behind. The GI Bill's legacy shows how policies that seem race-neutral, when applied in a system with discrimination baked in, can actually worsen inequality.

My family is part of this legacy of service. For generations, escaping the family farm in Allendale, S.C. — land on which my ancestors were formerly enslaved — was a wartime ritual for the Williams men.

My grandfather fled the farm to serve in a segregated U.S. Army unit in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was denied financial support for education and housing loans extended to millions of World War II veterans. Similar stories unfolded for veterans of highly decorated and mission-critical units such as the Tuskegee Airmen, the 761st Tank Battalion known as “Patton’s Panthers,” and the Red Ball Express truck convoy that resupplied allied forces during D-Day.

The GI Bill, while celebrated for expanding access to higher education and homeownership after World War II, had a deeply discriminatory impact due to its unequal implementation. In 2019, the typical white family had eight times the wealth of a typical Black family, a disparity rooted in the GI Bill's racist application. While the bill offered such benefits as college tuition and home loans, Black veterans, especially in the South, were often denied access, perpetuating the racial wealth gap.

White veterans, on the other hand, leveraged these benefits to obtain degrees, purchase homes and start businesses, generating wealth and opportunities that were passed down through generations. This systemic exclusion locked Black veterans and their descendants out of these crucial wealth-building tools. As home values and businesses grew, so did the wealth gap, compounding the disadvantages faced by Black families and limiting their access to education, upward mobility and health care.

The GI Bill's discriminatory implementation impacted not just wealth, but the health of Black families. The GI Bill facilitated homeownership for white veterans, often a gateway to neighborhoods with quality schools and improved access to health care. Denied this opportunity, many Black veterans were forced into substandard housing and subpar schools in segregated communities. They faced environmental hazards and limited resources from living in disadvantaged conditions. These factors have contributed to the health inequities we see today, with Black Americans experiencing high rates of chronic diseases and a shorter life expectancy. The inability to build intergenerational wealth through homeownership worsens these disparities, as economic stability is a social determinant linked to health outcomes.

The denial of the GI Bill to Black veterans was a grave injustice that continues to shape our present. However, Congress can be part of the solution. Proposed legislation, the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act, is a step toward addressing these inequities. Initially introduced in 1989 when George H. W. Bush was president, and reintroduced in every Congress since, the measure proposes a commission to study reparations for African Americans, including the exclusion of Black World War II veterans from the GI Bill. The commission could provide insights into the origins and perpetuation of racial disparities and offer recommendations. Though the legislation does not mandate reparations, it will foster national dialogue and could generate the political will for policy change.

Like my ancestors, I answered the call to serve, but my path was paved with opportunities they were denied. I stand on their shoulders, a first-generation college graduate and doctor, thanks to a congressional appointment to the United States Air Force Academy and the doors opened by my military service. Yet, those very doors were slammed shut for generations of Black veterans who came before me.

This Veteran's Day, as we honor those who served, let us commit to righting this historical wrong. Demand justice for those denied by supporting the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act and help build a nation where opportunity is truly equal and liberty and justice are a reality for all.

Dr. Brian Williams is a U.S. Air Force Academy graduate and served as a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow at the National Academy of Medicine. His bestselling memoir, “The Bodies Keep Coming: Dispatches from a Black Trauma Surgeon on Racism, Violence, and How We Heal” is available anywhere books are sold. Follow him on X: BHWilliamsMD