The Bravery of Red Wing: A Dance of Unity and Irony

In the heart of Red Wing, on a sunny July 27th, the streets thrummed with anticipation. Thousands, their voices echoing like a chorus, gathered to send off 175 white soldiers, pride evident in their eyes. They streamed towards the Levee Park depot, their march a testament to the war they were headed to. But there were more men on the horizon. The state had made its call: 9,000 men, irrespective of color, to report for duty.

A different sort of energy filled the air on August 3rd. The Patterson brothers, Howard and Dewey, stood shoulder to shoulder. The only two "colored" men from the city heading off to war. A heartfelt dinner at the St. James Hotel had celebrated their bravery, and as the two stepped out, a banner flapping between them boldly declared: "Kill the Kaiser."

The city, showing its unity, had decided they too deserved a parade. The steady beat of the Elks Drum Corps led them, and a platoon of Home Guards encircled them protectively as they made their way to the Great Western Depot.

Simultaneously, over in St. Paul’s Rice Park, the air buzzed with patriotic fervor. Governor J. A. A. Burnquist stood tall, addressing a sea of faces, saluting the 128 black draftees. His words resonated with praise for their unwavering loyalty. Yet, amid the applause and cheers, his statement on equal chances in the army echoed with a bitter undertone. Segregation was the reality. Most black soldiers were relegated to the sidelines.

Amid the fervor, voices like St. Paul's Mayor L.C. Hodgson and Hallie Q. Brown from Wilberforce University, a beacon for black education, chimed in. Hallie, a prominent advocate, was in town for a special event, yet she took a moment to stand with the departing soldiers.

Fast forward to August 1st, Minneapolis was in high spirits. At the grand Dyckman Hotel, the dining rooms teemed with black soldiers. The city's gesture was grand, but it was the words of former mayor William Eustis that lingered in the air, laden with irony: "Make this world just as free as you are." With music filling the streets and a grand procession, Minneapolis bid its own farewell on August 3rd.

War had come, and the nation's response was a dance of unity, pride, and complex emotions.