MONTFORD POINT HISTORY

A Quick History of Montford Point

In June 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802 establishing the Fair Employment Practices Commission. This Order prohibited racial discrimination in the defense industry. All branches of the U.S. Armed Forces were effectively open to African-Americans for the first time in US history.

August 26, 1942, the first African-American recruits began training at an all-black recruit training facility, Camp Montford Point in Jacksonville, North Carolina, under the instruction of white Drill Instructors. Within a year, the first wave of graduating recruits became the first black Drill Instructors and pushed the incoming recruits even harder than their white counterparts had.

Over the next 7 years, 20,000 young black men trained at this segregated boot camp. In 1949, the Marine Corps was desegregated and African-American recruits began training with the white recruits at Parris Island.

These men went on to be known as the Montford Point Marines and were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2012 for their unwavering perseverance and courage that inspired change in the Marine Corps. Unfortunately, 70 years had passed and many of the Original Montford Pointers were not easily found or are no longer with us. Of the 20,000 men trained at the segregated boot camp, the National Montford Point Marine Association (NMPMA) has only located, verified, and presented the medal to about 1500.

This means that almost 18,500 veterans and their families have no idea that their contribution to our heritage and society has been recognized as having significant value by the government they served and the country that they fought for.

The National Montford Point Marine Association (NMPMA) works in chapters across the country to raise awareness about the original Montford Pointers, in order to preserve the legacy of their lives and accomplishments. The NMPMA works hard at locating and recognizing the first African-American Marines, sharing the story of Montford Point, and ensuring the heroism of the Montford Pointers is preserved in history.

Dark Frames has teamed up with The National Montford Point Marine Association in order to make a narrative feature film, currently titled Black Boots. We have been working with the NMPMA for the past 5 years to collect information and stories in order to write a script that tells an interesting fictional, but honest, recount that highlights the importance of the struggle these young African-American men lived through.

Click Here to learn more about the Black Boots Movie

If you want to learn how you can help make this film a reality, Click Here