31-07-2012, 07:43 AM
(This post was last modified: 31-07-2012, 08:17 AM by Adele Edisen.)
Peter,
Ralph Bunche was very high up in the OSS and very much respected. He directed OSS activities in the European Theater of War; the OSS was our only spying organization fighting the fascists and working with resistance groups in France, Germany, and elsewhere, where much of the war was, as you may recall. I am quite sure, despite what the internet states, that he directed our spies in Europe, and the African action was only a small part of it. I don't think there was a separate division in the OSS just for Africa. My professor had worked in Europe, not in Africa. Dr. Harris was white, by the way. However, in the United Nations after the war, Ralph Bunche became a diplomat of sorts and did a lot of work in maintaining and creating peace between tribal elements and African nations, as well as in other places in the world.
I correct myself:
I found this on the internet: Bunche is listed as specializing in African affairs and there was an African Division in the OSS, but what I recall my professor telling me was that his work for Ralph Bunche was done in Europe, which is why I assumed that Bunche had been Director of spies in Europe and that the war in Africa was considered part of the European Theater of War. However, the fascist countries of Germany and Italy in the main had many African Colonial interests, and this is where Bunche played an important role.
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"Joining the War Effort
In September 1941 with the attack on Pearl Harbor and World War II looming in the future Bunche was recruited by the Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI), a fledgling intelligence organization. He joined the COI as a senior analyst specializing in African affairs. In 1942, the COI became the Office of Strategic Services. Bunche moved to the OSS Research and Analysis Branch in 1943 to serve as an analyst and chief of the Africa division. Bunche was responsible for following developments on British territories in Africa, including what later became Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa, and Namibia.
Bunche became a well-known authority on this African issues. In fact, he was often called upon by policymakers to answer questions about Africa's stability and possible Axis plotting. Bunche also authored manuals about the political and economic conditions in African territories so U.S. troops stationed in the region could properly plan and take precautions.
As World War II began to draw to a close, Bunche realized that he could use his knowledge of Africa to make a difference elsewhere. In 1944, he transferred to the State Department, becoming its first African-American desk officer. In 1945, he became the head of the Division of Dependent Affairs and helped draft the United Nations Charter in San Francisco."
More on Ralph Bunche: https://www.cia.gov/news-information/fea...unche.html
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Adele
Ralph Bunche was very high up in the OSS and very much respected. He directed OSS activities in the European Theater of War; the OSS was our only spying organization fighting the fascists and working with resistance groups in France, Germany, and elsewhere, where much of the war was, as you may recall. I am quite sure, despite what the internet states, that he directed our spies in Europe, and the African action was only a small part of it. I don't think there was a separate division in the OSS just for Africa. My professor had worked in Europe, not in Africa. Dr. Harris was white, by the way. However, in the United Nations after the war, Ralph Bunche became a diplomat of sorts and did a lot of work in maintaining and creating peace between tribal elements and African nations, as well as in other places in the world.
I correct myself:
I found this on the internet: Bunche is listed as specializing in African affairs and there was an African Division in the OSS, but what I recall my professor telling me was that his work for Ralph Bunche was done in Europe, which is why I assumed that Bunche had been Director of spies in Europe and that the war in Africa was considered part of the European Theater of War. However, the fascist countries of Germany and Italy in the main had many African Colonial interests, and this is where Bunche played an important role.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Joining the War Effort
In September 1941 with the attack on Pearl Harbor and World War II looming in the future Bunche was recruited by the Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI), a fledgling intelligence organization. He joined the COI as a senior analyst specializing in African affairs. In 1942, the COI became the Office of Strategic Services. Bunche moved to the OSS Research and Analysis Branch in 1943 to serve as an analyst and chief of the Africa division. Bunche was responsible for following developments on British territories in Africa, including what later became Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, South Africa, and Namibia.
Bunche became a well-known authority on this African issues. In fact, he was often called upon by policymakers to answer questions about Africa's stability and possible Axis plotting. Bunche also authored manuals about the political and economic conditions in African territories so U.S. troops stationed in the region could properly plan and take precautions.
As World War II began to draw to a close, Bunche realized that he could use his knowledge of Africa to make a difference elsewhere. In 1944, he transferred to the State Department, becoming its first African-American desk officer. In 1945, he became the head of the Division of Dependent Affairs and helped draft the United Nations Charter in San Francisco."
More on Ralph Bunche: https://www.cia.gov/news-information/fea...unche.html
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Adele