Thank you Jackie Robinson

[ITAL]

33. ...

Charles Isum, native of Los Angeles, was a Medical Sergeant in the 92nd Division, one of the two all Black combat units in the First World War. Right at the end of the war he was gassed, but he managed to survive. After the Armistice, but before he was shipped home, Isum was arrested by military police for attending a wedding of a French friend he'd made. At the time the military regulations tried to forbid interaction with French civilians (especially women) and African Americans. Isum fought the charges, getting back up from both his white commanding officer and the citizenry of the village, and they were dropped before any sort of trial by court martial.

After returning back to LA, Isum settled down, married, and had children. Once while going out to eat in San Pedro he realized he'd been given a menu with higher prices than the one for whites. He ended up successfully suing the establishment and collected damages of $200 - not an insignificant amount at the time.

So, why am I telling Isum's story here? Well, one of his daughters was named Rachel. She ended up marrying a kid from UCLA by the name of Jackie Robinson...

Jackie met Charles shortly before the elder man's death (he passed away quite young, I have assumed it may be partly related to him being gassed in the war). So, today I point out that his father-in-law had his own story of challenging the racial norms of the time.