Black Veterans Reading List: Book Covers Collage
Ron E. Armstead, drawing from his decades-long experience with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Veterans Braintrust, has compiled the following collage of book covers for Black History Month. The theme? Essential and recommended readings on Black contributions to the U.S. military.
The sheer volume of material is a powerful testament to what should no longer be a contestable fact: Black veterans were critical forces in U.S. military history.
About the Authors
Ron E. Armstead
Ron E. Armstead is the Executive Director for the Congressional Black Caucus Veterans BraIntrust (CBCVB) located in Washington, DC, and a past consultant to the late Secretary Jesse Brown’s Veterans Administration’s Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans. He has served as Executive Director of the CBCVB since its inception in 1988, first under retired Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), a decorated Korean War combat veteran and Dean of the New York Congressional Delegation, next under Rep. Corrine Brown (D-FL), former Ranking Member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and currently under Sanford Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), former Ranking Democratic Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Co-Chair of the bi-partisan Congressional Military Families Caucus, and now Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), Ranking Democratic Member of the Science, Space and Technology Committee, and Co-Chair, Congressional Homelessness Caucus, and newly elected Rep. Anthony Brown (D-MD), Member of the House Armed Services Committee and former Lt. Governor of Maryland. Under his leadership the Veterans Braintrust has expanded from its small core group to become one of the premiere forums for policy debate between veterans of African descent and representatives of government in the country.
Ron also holds a Master Degree in City Planning (MCP) with a concentration in Affordable Housing and Community Development from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); is a Licensed Social Worker (LSW) in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts with over 30 years of experience, and is currently on an extended leave of absence from Howard University’s Graduate School of Social Work Doctoral Program focusing on Social Policy and Planning.