Willie Woods, USMC, Montford Point Marines

Willie Woods joined the U.S. Marine Corps at a time when commanders believed black service members could not measure up to their white counterparts. In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt opened up the armed forces to all races, but units remained segregated.In the Marine Corps, the first African-American units were trained at Montford Point, North Carolina, near Camp Lejeune. In this edition, Willie Woods discusses his decision to join the Corps, the discrimination he faced at various times, his service as a prison guard on Guam after the war, and the legacy of the Montford Point Marines on the Armed Forces and our nation.