<P> Elizabeth "Tex" Williams served in the Women's Army Corps as an African American military photographer from 1944 to 1970 . According to scholars, she was one of the few successful women photographers in her time . </P> <P> The Navy did not follow suit in changing its policies to include women of color until January 25, 1945 . The first African - American woman sworn into the Navy was Phyllis Mae Dailey, a nurse and Columbia University student from New York . She was the first of only four African - American women to serve in the navy during World War II . </P> <P> Many soldiers of color served their country with distinction during World War II . There were 125,000 African Americans who were overseas in World War II . Famous segregated units, such as the Tuskegee Airmen and 761st Tank Battalion and the lesser - known but equally distinguished 452nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion, proved their value in combat, leading to desegregation of all U.S. armed forces by order of President Harry S. Truman in July 1948 via Executive Order 9981 . </P> <P> Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. served as commander of the Tuskegee Airmen during the war . He later went on to become the first African - American general in the United States Air Force . His father, Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., had been the first African - American brigadier general in the Army (1940). </P>

How many african american soldiers served in ww2