You boys
have dishonored our nation,
and betrayed your oath to protect the people of this country,
What do you have to say for yourselves?
Men of the 24th Infantry,
this is Texas,
And we have a great opportunity here,
While we're overseeing the building of Camp Logan,
we will also be building our legacy,
a legacy, if proven worthy,
that will carry us all the way to the shores of France,
Let's go! Let's go!
First Sergeant Hayes,
take command,
Sir,
Home sweet home, boys,
Order, arms!
Fall out!
You gonna get a taste, boy,
I talked to the cleaner,
the Colonel said we're going to France,
- Oh, yeah, - Yeah,
- Yeah, we're going to France, - Uh-huh,
Yeah, while we're out here digging the shitting hole,
That's the 24th honor,
We fly to Philippines but not France,
Well, this is the war to make the world a safer democracy,
And we're not part of that democracy,
How you talk like that? You talk better than white folks,
He's a fancy talking nigger, Didn't you know that?
Yeah, he's a joker,
And he has already been to France,
- Now, hold on now, you've been to France? - Yes, sir, That's right,
You better tell me about that,
- What do you wanna know? - Then why'd you join the army, boy?
- Same reason as you, friend, - Oh, hell no,
See I joined 'cause the judge said
I go to the army or I go to jail,
I had no choice,
But you're so goddamn smart,
What in the shit is you doing here?
Oh, he's smart, Walker, he know the fancy words,
You shut 'em tunnel lips, pickaninny,
before I come over there and shut 'em,
I'm no better than you,
But in here, you think you is,
- Now, hold on now, Walker, - I want to serve my country
and raise the image of the colored man,
You can't raise me nowhere, boy,
I've got this raisin',
- Hey! Hey! - You put that down, you put that down now,
Damn it, Walker, leave him be,
I'm just messing with him,
If I wanted to use it, I'd have slashed your face already, boy,
Come on then,
I'm just messin' with you, boy,
Getting friendly with you 'cause I don't know you,
Getting familiar,
What's your name?
- Boston, - Walker,
Mulatto bastard,
Attention!
Hey!
Get out that hole,
Get your asses cleaned up,
Curfew!
Sorry, Captain,
- What happened to your eye? - Had an accident, Captain,
Mmm-hmm,
- Get your black ass back inside, soldier, - Yes, Captain,
You can walk down the Champs-Elysees
hand in hand with whoever,
Everybody's equal there,
Hold on, hold on, hold on,
You ever get with one of them French white gals?
White and colored, both,
- Come on! - Mmm-hmm,
Boston, you something,
You know, but why didn't you stay there?
It's not home,
Do you talk that Frenchie?
I know you know something,
Oh, what's that?
It means, "There's no love like the love of a brother,"
Hmm, I like that,
- Yeah? - Yeah,
- All right, - I'm learning,
,,,a move for the brothers, right?
- Say it again, - Close,
Yes, I got it,
You think you're getting to know him,
Look like you needed a drink with that sandwich, boy,
Just be glad I didn't shit on him,
Is someone there?
Oh, you wanna get your head cut,
Oh, Lord!
Oh, you scared?
You look like you've seen Medusa,
Where,,, Where you coming from?
- Oh, it's a story,,, - Ah, let me tell it,
Okay, go on,
♪ You see
♪ We went down to the sugar shack
♪ And then
♪ Me and him got kicked out
♪ 'Cause of him
♪ I'm able
♪ At gun point ♪
- That's the whole story, - Now, listen, now you tell it wrong,
Tell him what happened,
Listen, so, look,
- I had me a gal, all right? - Okay,
Everything was going good, all right?
I was giving her my best move, all right,
And then, all of a sudden, she just goes down to the ground,
Hey, I thought she dropped something,
All of a sudden she puts her whole mouth
- on Mr, Johnson, - All right, now,
Fucking piranha or what,,,
Goddamn Dracula,
Whoa, whoa, wait, wait,,, She bit you?
Yeah, I mean, almost,
What else was she doing down there? I had to push her off,
Why you laughing?
- I'm sorry, - You know what? Fuck you both,
I don't think she was trying to bite you,
What? Then what the hell was she doing down there?
Well, that's not gonna happen now, you see, 'Cause you pushed her off,
What?
- That's right, - Hey, let's get some,,,
- Hold on now, I didn't know you could do that, - Too late!
No, we gotta go back, I gotta get that,
Uh-uh, let's go, bring yourself, - No, hold on now,
Three cents,
Here,
Oh, ain't that some shit,
Ain't no seats left,
Three cents,
Hold that car,
Will if it ain't the fancy nigger,
You know, I'm just now getting out that hole Sarge put me in 'cause of you,
You ain't gonna be talking to me, boy?
Oh, you fancy and deaf, huh?
Three cents,
Come on back here,
Shit,
Walker?
Walker, what the hell are you doing?
What does it look like I'm doing? Sitting in my goddamn seat,
You better stand your ass up and come on back here with the rest of us,
Come on back here, boy's room, sit on my lap, come on,
- You want me to sit on your lap? - Move behind the screen,
There ain't no room, man,
Get back with the others,
Look, I'm a soldier here on assignment,
I'm headed back to camp,
I paid my money,
Now just go ahead and drive this machine,
Oh, shit,
Officer Cross,
- Need some help here, - Walker,,,
- Stop being stubborn, Come on, - Stop worrying so much,
- This one right here, Officer, - We're trying to help you,
Y'all get off,
Get where you belong,
I'm a soldier in the U,S, Army,
I sit where I wanna sit,
Shit!
Sir,,,
Don't you ever talk back to a white man,
Yo! Stop!
Drop it, big buck,
You mean as about as much to me as a gnat,
So get off before I swat ya,
Okay, come on, come on, Boston,,,
Let's go, let's go, come on,
Come here, boy,
You're a soldier, huh?
You ain't nothing but a nagger in a fancy getup,
Jim Crow's the law,
Respect it,
Sorry for the trouble, folks,
Private William Boston,
you have an impressive background,
It's says here in your file you recently graduated from the Sorbonne
- in Paris, France, - Yes, sir,
It's a fine school,
I'd like to recommend you
for Colored Officer Training School in Des Moines, Iowa,
I think with your credentials you'll do very well there,
- No, sir, - No?
Why, Private?
Well, sir,
I joined the army to be of service to my country
and my race,
Your only allegiance is to your country, Private,
Of course, sir,
However, sir, my intent
is to constructive with the other men of color, sir,
Well, that's a lot of hard work, Private,
Officers are excused from that kind of manual labor,
Is that what drove your commission, Captain,
escaping manual labor?
I admire service over ambition,
So, we'll leave it at that,
You were with Private Walker last night,
Yes, sir,
Why did Private Walker violate the racial code?
Because he's a soldier in the U,S, Military, sir,
They violated his right as an American,
Private, he's a negro in Houston, Texas,
He has no rights,
Things are a little different down here in the South,
Boston,
From now on, I'll expect you men to obey the racial code,
- Do you understand? - Yes, sir,
You're dismissed,
Hey!
Get away from that water, boy,
It's our water,
My apologies,
There's no sign,
Drink your own kind's water,
But where's my kind's water?
You sassin' me, boy?
- Don't put your hands on me, - Do what now?
Don't put your hands on me,
Clean your plough, boy,
Only somebody you gonna be pissing on today, boy,
is yourself,
We got guns too,
Next time it ain't going to spit, it's going to be blood,
You ain't gonna be wiping it off 'cause you'll be dead,,,
Nigger,
You too,
At ease,
Let's go, boys,
All right, Boston,
- Evening, Sergeants, - Evening, Boston,
- Enjoying yourself, Private? - Oh, yes, sir, First Sergeant,
Someone did a great thing for us,
You know, I've been in the army for a long time
and I knows enough to know something about you don't add up,
I don't know what you mean, First Sergeant,
This act you're putting on,
walking different, talking different,
I'm not acting, First Sergeant,
- Excuse me, - I didn't dismiss you,
Dismissed,
Why are you so hard on that boy?
You know who he reminds me of?
- Who? - Fagen,
That Black motherfucker did desert
and join the Filipino army, fought against his own damn country and us,
Yep,
Why Boston remind you of him?
I don't think Fagen believed he was a nigger,
just like him,
Let's go play some tonk,
You know any Eubie Blake?
Very nice,
You know, I've seen him play in New York on numerous occasions,
You've seen Eubie Blake?
Yes, ma'am, and Scott Joplin as well,
What about Jimmy Earl?
You know about Jimmy Earl?
I listen to Talking Machine recordings,
You sound just like him,
Are you playing for us tonight?
Come on now, Marie,
- So you're not playing for us tonight? - No,
They dropped me last minute,
Said they wanted men to play for men,
Didn't want me to distract,
- Then why are you here? - To distract,
So maybe I can help you out with that?
What you mean?
- May I have this dance? - Why should I?
'Cause you've got a score to settle,
Looks like you took back the night,
You might be right,
What happened? Let's keep dancing,
Uh, I got to get home,
May I walk you?
Do you like living here?
Lot of folks is leaving, thought about migration,
- Why do you stay? - My home,
Ever think of going to New York?
An artist like you could make a life there,
Hmm, New York City,
That's so far away from what I know,
I have to believe it's there,
like heaven,
You got people there?
- Most dead, - Mmm,
My mom passed a few years ago,
My daddy just this spring,
He's a preacher,
- Is that where you learned the piano? - Yes,
My daddy and I, we fell out,
What happened?
This is my place,
Thanks for the walk,
My pleasure,
Miss,,,
Marie, Downing,
William Boston,
Goodnight, William,
Goodnight, Marie,
This is chief of police, Carter Hammond,
Now, he assures me
that you will have no further problems with the Houston police,
As military police in the city of Houston,
you are to ensure order
of the men of the 24th Infantry only,
We'll issue nightsticks but no side on it,
Any trouble that you might encounter,
report it immediately to your new corporal,
Boston,
- Any questions? - No, sir,
You can stand at ease,
- Corporal, - Corporal,
Hey, you know the best thing about this? He'll have provost duty now,
What's that?
We gonna be in town every day,
Gonna get me a little hand,
You trace that gal of yours?
Oh, yeah, that piano-playing gal,
She still got you chasing behind that jelly roll?
- Bells are ringing for me and my gal, - Yeah,
Hey, well, good luck with them crackers,
Corporal Half Falooda,
You can fool everybody else with your Houdini,
but you can't fool old Sarge,
Top Sergeant,
Encouraging the men, sir,
Being an MP ain't no walk in the park, sir, No, sir,
That's correct,
I'd like a private word with Corporal Boston,
Yes, sir,
Corporal, sir?
You're the only man I have
that understands both sides,
You can make a difference here, William,
The police brutalize us, sir,
We need more than night sticks,
I report everything that happens here to the War Department,
What I need from you
is to keep the men safe and in order,
You do that,
and I will personally protect you from any trouble,
All we want, sir,
is to be treated as soldiers and as men,
That is certainly a fair request,
Thank you, sir,
Chief, Captain,
Dead man walking,
Ah!
I wanna know what your problem is,
Ooh!
You see this here?
I got it moving up San Juan Hill
alongside Teddy Roosevelt,
Gave it everything we had,
Courage,
blood,
everything,
In the end, it was our dead black bodies on the ground,
and my eye,,,
That lying son of a bitch
sailed off to the White House,
took our credit,,,
We don't matter, boy,
Bullshit,
We do matter,
We keep proving ourselves,
maybe things will change,
Only thing worse than a dumb nigger is a blind one,
- I didn't dismiss you yet, - Yes, sir, First Sergeant,
Everything you've seen here so far,
that's child's play,
What you gonna do
when the fire get hot?
You're gonna run back to your France
and tell them you helped with the negro cause?
Nigger,
Next time you get an itch
and want to talk to me,
you better look around,
You got too many problems
to be asking me what my problem is,
Ah, dismissed,
Actor,
I received a message from my brother Ben,
Apparently, our father is doing quite poorly,
Did your brother say anything else?
Just more of the same,
"Wasting your career commanding colored troops,
"ruining the family legacy,"
You're never going to get what you deserve
as long as you work with negros,
You'll retire a colonel,
instead of retiring a general, like your brother,
My brother,,,
The general,
he could leverage his position with the War Department
and get the 24th over there,
in the fight, in the war,
He's never going to do that,
Then I'll retire a colonel,
Hi,
William,
I couldn't stop thinking about you,
- Thank you, - May I come in,
That's not a good idea,
Well, can you come out here?
William, I have a guest,
Corporal Fancy, What you doing here, boy?
- Is she your girl? - What you think?
Hmm? Good night,
Mmm-hmm,
Boy, you should have seen your face,
Can't believe you bought that gal flowers,
You know what she did?
Slammed the door in your face,
Then she threw 'em out,
What are you talking about?
Fool ass Boston,
Didn't know his best gal was my little whore,
Oh, shit,
Get up, Come on,
- You ready now? - Come on,
Enough!
Get out of my way, Hey, Hey!
Sons of bitches, Get your black asses up!
Let me tell you something right now,
Hey, I'm gonna cool you two bucks off, Huh?
You ready for that? Come with me,
Oh, shit,
What's taking you so long, Private?
Sir, that's another man,
You wanna be next?
Tie the goddamn ropes,
Welcome to my world, boy,
You ain't so fancy now, huh, Uncle Tom?
Welcome to my world,
- Franklin, you tie those nice and tight, - Yeah, you tie them ropes,
Listen to your master, boy,
Why do you do this to yourself, Walker?
Don't you look at me,
Don't you look at me, Private,
- You keep those eyes off me, - Yes, sir,
I never did like grapefruit,,,
But my mother made me eat them,
Now you gonna hate them too, boy,
Jesus Christ,
Corporal, I promoted you so that you would be an example for the other men,
- You understand that? - Yes, sir,
Then you're dismissed,
He was fighting over a whore, sir,
I'm well aware of that, Captain,
Boston is no different than the others,
They're all inferior,
and it disturbs me, Colonel,
when you start to think that they are more than what they are,
I'm curious about something, Abner,
Is it his education that makes you feel inferior?
- Am I dismissed, Colonel? - No, you are not,
That horse shit today,
I could have you court martialed,
At the very least, stripped of your rank,
- Are we clear? - Yes, sir,
Get out of my sight,
Walker don't mean nothing to her,
- Don't, Joe, - Ain't too common,
I mean, look at you, The way you carry yourself,
the words you be putting out,
boy, you something different,
- Don't tell me what I know now, - No, thank you,
Boston! Boston!
A man's in trouble, Come on, now,
Come on,
He wouldn't get behind me, so I gutted him,
Son of a bitch, you lying,
- He's ahead of you, - Well, your boy's dead now,
Drop the knife,
Joe!
Backup's gone now, boy,
You ain't so tough now, is you?
I'm escorting you to the police,
For the last time, you drop that damn knife,
Y'all boys want some soldier this time?
Hey! Hey!
- He's got a razor, - Walker, get back,
Who wants to get behind me now?
Y'all gonna let this boy arrest me,
- This nigger's crazy, - Listen to me,
You kill us, you don't get paid,
You won't see a plug nickel while they investigate what happened here?
Quartermaster will shut this place down for months,
Let us pass,
Colonel Norton will see to it that pay windows reopen today,
You like this boy enough to not get paid,
You want to feed your families? Back up!
- Tommy Lee ain't worth it, - He ain't worth it,
Miller, pick that man up,
We just gonna stand here?
What the hell is going on here?
Chief Hammond, as ordered by yourself
and Lieutenant Colonel Charles Norton,
I have arrested this man for threatening members of the 24th Infantry
and murdering a local citizen,
That true?
God damn right,
This is the murder weapon, Walker,,,
I place him in your custody, sir,
Yours now, boy,
- Arrest him, - All right, let's go,
Not him, Tommy Lee,
What?
You arresting a white man
for killing that God damn nigger?
That's an order, Cross,
Them solder boys been shitting all over us,
You shut the hell up or I'll fire you
as sure as I'm standing here,
Twenty men, sir,
Outnumbered by 20 against four!
Corporal, I watched a man die, sir,
- I had to look in his face, sir, - Corporal!
Lower your voice when you are talking to the Colonel,
We need side arms, sir,
Chief Hammond will not allow it,
William,
the circumstances here are not lost on any of us,
Do we have to do it this way?
The police want to kill you,
Walk with me,
If you had a gun today,
it would be much worse for you,
You have to believe that,
Hey, y'all, Here comes the man of the day,
What is this, sir?
I believe you're the first negro
to ever arrest a white man for murdering another negro,
Congratulations,
Three cheers for Boston, Hip, hip,,,
- Hooray! - Hip, hip,,,
Hooray!
Why did you put yourself out there like that?
- I'm a negro, - No, You ain't no negro,
- You's a lighty, - Is that why you hate me?
- You think I got it easier? - You God damn right,
you got it easier than me,
Look at you, boy, It's hard for me,
My mom and my papa were born as slaves,
I don't want to hear that shit,
In the proclamation they became teachers at the Freedman's Bureau,
He died in Atlanta in 1906,
You're right,
Yeah,
Their friends, their community,,,
They took it upon themselves to send me overseas
to educate and protect me,
It's the best education a person could get,
But it separated me from being colored in America,
I needed to be united with the legacy
that my parents lived for and died for,
You understand what I'm saying to you?
I needed to be united with the blood in my veins,
so I came here
and here is where I'm going to stay, Walker,
This is my home now,
Right next to you,
You better not be messin',
'Cause I ain't have much family, either,
So, I know what you're looking for,
I ain't touched her,
I was lying,
She ain't a whore,
She a proper lady,
I'm done,
Just go on back to your fancy book, boy,
May I have a word?
Are you following me?
Yes,
I don't like being followed,
I just want a moment of your time,
If this about Zeke, I'm a grown woman,
- I can speak to whoever I choose, - Then choose me,
I'd like to buy you a meal,
Please,
Yes, please,
Thank you,
Are you all right?
This is where the society coloreds eat,
Well, aren't we part of colored society?
Maybe you, not me,
All you have to do to be part of colored society
is be colored,
Did you really throw my flowers away?
- Zeke tell you that? - Yeah,
Yeah, he did,
I didn't toss your flowers,
I thought they was pretty,
Got any other questions you wanna ask?
As a matter of fact, I do,
Do you like pork chops?
- Perfect, Sir, - Yes, sir,
Two pork chop lunches, please, Thank you,
Why you join the army?
For our rights,
Rights?
Yes, The right to life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness
That's how they say it, right?
Well, we ain't got none of them rights,
All we got is wrongs,
Well, if we get to fight for America,
we prove we deserve our rights,
What if you die?
Well,,,
If you die fighting for justice,
you never really die,
My mother used to say that to my father
and just like that too, you know?
"You never really die,,,"
Ain't you scared?
Not anymore,
William,,,
I'm not what you might think,
I think you're beautiful,
Boston,
Come on, boy,
Why'd you run off, Joe?
I got a telegram from home,
It was, uh,,, It was the fourth of July,
Can't nobody find my sister
or her baby,
So, of course, right after it I went right home to East St, Louis,,,
My mama's house,
It was full of bullet holes I mean, the whole neighborhood,
It looked like Admiral Dewey blowed it up!
A white mob came through there like a devil cyclone, killing,,,
And burning,
Here,
Take this
What is this?
It's mojo,
- It's for protection, - Protection?
I thought that's what you were,
You can't fight them and win,
They too strong,
When I see 'em coming, man,
I freeze,
Can't move a muscle,
I could fight over in France,
I ain't afraid of them but them white folks here,,,
Oh, they monsters,
And they scare me to death,
I've seen it first hand,
After they freed them burrheads,
they swarmed Fort Bend like a sea of locusts,
They ruin every God damn thing,
Nigger schools, nigger colleges,,,
High sheriff, tax collector,
They both God damn niggers,
White man couldn't even take a shit
without some tar baby coming in
right behind wanting to smell it,
My Pa,,,
he sittin' at that kitchen table,
he lost his forearm,
He was crying,
He had this in his hand,
I didn't know
if he was going to use it on himself,,,
or me,
"If you ain't better than a nigger
"you as good as dead,"
What are we gonna do, Jimmy?
We're gonna take our God damn country back,
- Ben, - Forgive the surprise visit, Charles
Always a pleasure, sir,
Father's dead,
He passed away two days ago,
I wanted to tell you in person,
- Did he suffer? - No,
I'd like to make you an offer,
A transfer to the War Department,
Overseeing combat soldiers in France,
This is great news,
The 24th Infantry is a crack unit,
- We are drilled, trained,,, - The offer is for you,
not your men,
Your decision to stand beside these negro troops will end in disappointment,
That was always Father's concern,
When father would speak to me
about my commanding colored troops,
he always said the same thing, that it would get me nowhere in my career,
And now,,,
you're here to take his place,
I can't escape this, can I?
All we want is what's best for you,
Tell me the issues with my men will be addressed,
These boys are not our men,
They're the cleanup crew,
They're men!
They are my men!
And they have honor,
They deserve better than this,
I always argued to Father that you were a good soldier,
That you were dealt a bad hand,
But you did the best you could,
We're the only ones left, Charles,
I'm counting on you to make our family proud,
Gentlemen,
I present your new commanding officer,
Major Abner Lockhart,
Major Lockhart,
the battalion is yours,
- First, Sergeant Hayes, - Sir,
Dismiss the men,
Sir,
All right, company, Dismissed,
- Thank you, Colonel, - Congratulations,
Boston,
William, I know you have concerns,
but I've had a very stern conversation with Major Lockhart
about how to treat you men in the future,
I believe he will serve in my stead,
and I believe he will protect you,
Sir,
Captain Lockhart doesn't understand,
I have the scars to prove it,
How did Washington respond to your reports?
Racially charged complaints are never received well
- at the War Department, - Then what do we do, sir?
You leave,
Go to officer training school in Des Moines and make a difference,
I thought we had a deal,
We did,
- It's time for you to leave, - No, sir,
The deal was we were going to be treated as soldiers
and as men, sir,
William, I've done all I can do here,
I hope you take my advice,
Good luck, William,
Boston,,,
So, Lockhart in charge now?
What that mean for us?
I don't want to go,
Why would I want to go?
Becoming an officer won't end the hell we're going through here,
I'd just be another Uncle Tom
who couldn't cut it with his own people,
- That's what they say, - Who?
Everybody, The 24th,,,
Me,
Everybody, There's no honor in that,
People say things they don't know,
Don't make 'em true,
My daddy had a storefront church, right down in San Felipe
I played piano every service,
Daddy's deacon,
Johnny Tibbs,
he was a good talker,
Church was riding high and Daddy,,,
Daddy loved him some Johnny,
One evening after choir let out,
Johnny and I was alone,
and he asked me to be his gal,
I said no,
That didn't stop him,
He,,,
He had his way with me,
And Daddy blamed me,
Called me a jezebel,
Put me out in the street,
Whole town thought I was this whore
who tried to take advantage of the good deacon,
But I ain't gonna lay down and die
'cause people think I'm something I ain't,
I was robbed of my honor,
You get outta here before they take yours too,
You come with me,
Oh, please,
Please,
Depends,,,
Can I bring my piano?
I would never separate a woman from her piano,
- Never? - No, never,
Never,
I'd like to attend officer training school, First Sergeant,
I heard you declined,
I changed my mind, First Sergeant,
Surprise, surprise,
My Roosevelt was your Norton,
How does it feel to be a damn fool?
I'm not a fool, First Sergeant,
Now you gonna cut and run,
I'm not running, First Sergeant,
My daddy was like you,
Soldier wanted to help the white man,
Told me, "Son,,,
"this a white man's world,
"You gotta play by the white man's rules,"
Yeah, well,
I saw what helping took him,
The same place it took me,
Same place it took you,
Niggaville,
Every man here has got a lit fuse,
But you thought you were better than most,
Thought you could get chummy with that white man,
Norton, he onto greener pastures,
and you here,
Sick,,,
crying to another nigga about being a nigga,
Well, welcome to the club, We all sick of it,
Watching our boys come though that gate head bloodied, beat up by the law
but you ain't got to worry about that no more,
Do ya, Corporal?
'Cause you running,
And what about you?
You playing boy with your "Yes, sir,
"No, sir,
"Be on my way, sir,"
You won't even look that white man in his eye,
I'm the one who's running?
At least what I did made a difference,
First Sergeant,
You right,
You the first colored man to ever arrest a white man
for killing a colored man,
You made a difference,
The judge just released him,
No charges,
Norton told me that on his way out the door,
I'll get Major Lockhart to put your papers through as you requested,
Get out of my face,
The clouds is gathering,
We might get us a little weather,
Maybe it'll hold,
Yeah? You think so? Hope it does,
Listen up,
I got something to tell you,
I'm leaving,
They are sending me to officer training school,
What, you gonna be an officer?
Boss is gonna be a captain,
What you gonna do when you Lieutenant Boss, huh?
Well, Davids, I'm going to France,
♪ Over there
♪ Send the word, send the word Over there
♪ That the Yanks are coming The Yanks are coming
♪ The drum, drum tumming everywhere
♪ Over there, say a prayer
♪ Send the word Send the word to beware
♪ We'll be known We're going over
♪ And we won't come back till it's all over over there ♪
Y'all quit shooting over here,
What'd you say to me?
You almost killed my baby,
Watch where you shootin', mister,
Mr, Cross, I didn't mean nothing by it,
- Get out of my way, bitch, - No!
Hey, you little nigga baby,
Hey, you gonna shut up?
- Don't touch him, - Oh, you'll shut up now,
I didn't mean nothing by it,
Got something else to say to me?
You got something to say to me now, huh?
Do you need to beg? Evans!
- Evans! Come get this dang bitch, - No!
- Evans, - No!
- Lock this bitch up, - No!
Best call it in first, Don't want no trouble from Hammond,
I don't give a shit about Hammond, I said,
- lock her up, - This ain't right,
Come on, get outta here!
My baby, please!
Somebody he,,,
Shut your goddamn mouth!
Come on, Get this shit up,
Yeah, this is Evans,
Let Chief know we got a nigga female we bringing in,
Cross, you son of a bitch!
Get off me, nigga,
- Get off me, - Funny to hit on people?
Goddammit,
Boss, They got one of your boys,
- Who? - The police, Nearly beat him to death,
- They bled him like a stuck pig, - Who are you talking about, McGhee?
One of yours, What's his name, Dawson,,,
No, Davids, That's it,
- Davids? - Yes, sir,
- You sure? - Come on now,
Wait,
What's going on?
A soldier's in trouble, I'm gonna be late,
Why don't you come inside with me,
- I can't, Marie, - Please,
I'll be right back, okay?
I promise you, I'll be right back,
Everything's fine, Everything's fine,
I promise,
Cross,
You detained one of my soldiers,
I need him released to my custody,
I think he's talking about that nigga we whipped upon,
Was he livin' when we left him?
Pissing and shitting himself,
- If that constitutes living, - Yeah, maybe,
Hey, Hey, Hey, Hey,
- I am Corporal,,, - I know who you are,
- I'm being nicer than I need to be, - Boston! Boston is my name,
Provost Guard, Assigned to protect the men of the 24th Infantry
and I am demanding that you take my soldier
out from whatever fucking hole you put him in!
Now,
All right,
We're good here,
It's all good,
They killed Boston,
What?
And Davids too,
Whole mob of them coming to finish us off,
Who said that?
The colored man came in from town,
They killed him,
They killed him!
What the hell is going on here?
Sir, two of my mens was killed today in Houston City limits,
We just got word that the local police and the white citizens
of Houston have declared war on us,
In fact, they could be on their way right now,
- First Sergeant, you tell these men to put down the guns, - Sir,,,
Tell them to out down the guns!
I was there
that December day in the Philippines when nine boys from the 24th
rounded 100 of them son of a bitch Filipinos out the trenches,
You hear me? One hundred!
We didn't lose a single man that day,
I done lost two tonight, I'll be damned if I lose another, sir,
Let me rephrase,
Tell my men to put down those damn guns, now!
No, sir,
Not as long as my men are in danger, sir,
Do you wanna lose them stripes?
No, sir,
How about a goddamn court-martial,
- No, sir, - Then you do what I fucking command!
Right now!
Put the weapons away,
Put 'em away,
Now, I'm going into Houston,
I will get down to the bottom of this,
You lock down this armory and don't you give another goddamn order,
You understand me, First Sergeant?
Do you understand me?
Yes, Sir,
Give me your armory key,
Jesus,
Give me a towel for this man,
Where's Davids?
They said they didn't know,
They can't find him,
He may be dead, Hell, who knows,
Look, we have a problem,
The men think there's a militia on the way,
Are they?
I need you to do everything in your power to allay this excitement,
You make it clear that this incident did not amount to anything,
Do you understand?
You want me to lie,
Yes, you lie, goddammit!
And no more talk of Davids,
We need to keep order,
Now, as you can see, Corporal Boston is alive,
But it is foolhardy to think about taking the law into your own hands,
I will personally see to it that this man Cross
is ejected from the police force,
All the police is like that,
- What do we do what they beat us again? - Report it to me,
- Where's Davids? - You know the mob's coming for us next,
A white mob, the whole town is talking about it,
Listen, you gotta get us up outta here, You gotta get us outta here right now!
- I don't have the authority to do that, - Then who has the authority?
First Sergeant, control your men,
I'm fed up! We fed up!
We can't go nowhere, sir!
Boston needs a medic, Davids' gone! What we doing?
Sergeant Hayes, you take control of the men,
Where you going, sir?
I'm going to call the Chief of Police,
They coming!
Argh!
- All hell done broke lose, - With me!
It's a mob of white folks!
- What? - It's a mob of white folks!
Which way did they go?
Private, which way did they go?
That way,
I'm on it,
Fire!
Fire goddammit!
Arm yourselves,
All right, men, Get your head on,
Get your bayonets,
Arm yourselves,
Halt!
Hold platoon, move!
Forward march!
Front rank kneel,
What the hell are you niggas doing?
Squad aim,
Squad fire,
Front rank stand,
Right!
This is our France,
Now look, these niggas give up, you let me handle it, You hear?
You're civilians, Don't you forget that,
The law run this town,
and nobody else,
Fire!
What the hell are you doing, Chief?
- It's for our own good, Cross, - Just let me outta here,
I can fix the city,
You only make it worse,
Chief?
Chief!
You niggas done lost your goddamn minds,
Form skirmish order,
Put your goddamn guns down, we'll let you live, You hear?
Boston, Boy, I showed you some respect,
- You show me some now, - Take aim,
Dammit, it's the law!
Fire!
Uh-oh,
Little boy's still alive,
Hey man,,, Oh, you need some help?
All right, come on, let me help you out here,
Come on, Get your ass up,
Come on, Come on, Get up,
Hey, you need some help,
Here you go, boy, I got you,
Joe,
He needed some help,
Say,
you boys on night maneuvers?
You smell that?
It's blood,
Yeah, but there ain't nobody innocent here, soldier,
Not them, not us,,,
Nobody,
Look in front,
Wait, Wait!
- Is it the police? - Hold your fire!
Hold your fire!
Stop!
What's going on?
- You got any weapons? - No,
No, my wife, she just had a baby I'm drivin' 'em home,
Drive through,
Don't slow down, don't look back, Come on,
- Thank you, - They're not police,
Hold your fire,
Clear a way, Clear a way, y'all,
Boston, The fuck is your problem?
- Hey, Clinton, - What, they beat on your head too hard, boy?
We should have killed 'em, They can identify us!
- Clinton, calm yourself, - Hey,
- A machine's coming, - Machine!
- Sarge, what we doing? - Hold your fire!
- What we doing, Sarge? - Sarge, what we doing?
Wait,
Wait!
Walker, take a look, See what's what,
No,
You, Boston,
What?
Army,
They're not police, this one's a captain,
Oh, shit!
Boston,
Shit!
Army,
- National Guard, - No, don't say that,
Shit!
Why the fuck we shooting at soldiers?
Goddammit! What,,,
What was we supposed to do?
One of you niggas get us up outta here!
Sarge,,,
It's over now,
What we gonna do?
Well, you know the answer to that,
We done soldier together long time,
you and me,
Yeah,
We can go back to camp, They might not be dead,
I ain't going back to camp no more,
There ain't no more honor in this world for me,
No,
No, I ain't doing that,
Looks like it's your lucky day, Boston,
For all the hell I done put you through,
Let me have it,
You holster that weapon right now, Boston,
So long, soldier,
Sarge, you ain't got to do this,
Goodbye,
I'm not going to shoot you, First Sergeant,
I didn't think you would,
You don't have to do this,
Then let them do it for me?
No,
Army was my whole life,
That's over now,
We crossed that line,
You,,,
are no actor,
I was the one wearing the mask,
That's over now,
Don't you boys move,
Stay right there,
Hand over your weapons,
Do it now,
No! Oh, no!
No!
Get off me! Get off me!
Hey! No! Don't you touch her!
Don't you touch her!
You stay with me!
She's strong, She gonna be okay,
Have a seat,
Thought you'd be in France by now,
It seems another war took precedence,
Rather ironic place for a court martial, don't you think?
And they're a young couple,
I was married here,
Did you do this?
This is a perfect place for a wedding,
William, what I'm about to say to you violates
my moral code
to the depths of my soul, but I have to say it,
If someone doesn't testify,,,
for the prosecution
they are going to execute every last man,
You want me to name the men?
Someone has to,
Okay,
Corporal William Boston, I was there,
The weapon that they found you with had not been discharged,
I was there,
They need someone
who was against the mutiny,
Someone that they can trust
and respect,
Trust and respect?
The good one?
It's who you are,
You're a good man,
If it's not you, they'll find someone else,
- So be it, - You'd rather die?
Yes! With honor,
There's no honor
in killing innocent people,
Innocent?
I should've never taken the transfer,
I should've never left you men behind,
None of us are absolved,
William,,,
help me save your life,
No!
The actions I took with the men
come from the same self you find worthy of saving,
If I am worth it,
then so is every man in this regiment
that marched on Houston,
I am them and they are me,
You can make a difference,
You can go to officer training, become an officer,
You can affect the careers
of thousands of colored soldiers,
I am them,,,
- and they are,,, - Damn it!
William?
Do you have a girl?
What's her name?
Marie,
Do you love her?
With all my heart,
She must be quite distraught,
I imagine so,
I didn't fire my gun,,,
but I wanted to kill them,,,
just as much as the others did,
Every time they spit,,,
they pissed,,,
they'd beat us down,
I could, I could feel it,
I could feel it,
Hate,,,
But when I aimed the gun,,,
Oh, God, help me,
Oh, help me,
I saw a man,,,
And you know the thing?
He didn't see one back,
I won't stay unheard forever,
You keep pushing people down,
sooner or later they rise up,,,
and they won't see a man,,,
they'll see murder,
If death is the price for a night of justice,,,
I'm ready to pay it,
My answer is no,
No,
You should be on your way,
I told you when I first met you,,,
that I admired service,
Sacrifice over ambition,
I always will,
I know,
Goodbye, William,
Goodbye,,,
Charles,
We call Private Cleator Lucky to the stand,
God damn Judas,
He's a kid,
Private Lucky has been given immunity for his testimony,
Good for him,
Was there a belief among the men
that Private David's was killed by the local police?
Yes, sir,
Was he dead?
No, sir,
They just had beat him awful bad,
Point him out to us,
Private, please stand,
Private Lucky,
can you identify any of the leaders of the mutiny?
Private Walker there,
Him and Private Franklin,
Miller,,,
Wilson and Taylor there,
They charged the armor and took the weapons,
Gave 'em out,
And Big Joe, he yelled,,,
They're coming!
Was there a mob?
No, sir,
Matter of fact was that there was nothing out there but an old cow,
The false mob, was that the signal to mutiny?
Yes, sir, I believe so,
Will you men please stand,
Walker told Private Jackson, Anderson,
Lamon White, Anthony Harris,
Ennis Clark, they all wanted to go to town and raise Cain,
Sergeant Clinton and Sergeant Hayes, they's led the march,
Will you man stand,
Private,
who was the other key figure in the mutiny?
Come on, Private,
Who was it?
Corporal William Boston,
What was his role?
Well, sir,,,
We all looked up to Boston,
And when he come back all beat up and picked up a rifle,,,
That was it,
It's when I made my mind to go,
I know it was the same for every man there,
Boston's the most educated fellow I seen, colored or white,
And for him to have all that and be whooped upon like that,,,
nothing seemed to matter no more,
We felt we weren't all men,,,
if we didn't march too,
Yes, sir,
Boston's the one,
He the real reason we all done it,
Corporal William Boston,
Rise and stand with the man,
You boys
have dishonored our nation,,,
and betrayed your oath to protect the people of this country,
What do you have to say for yourselves?
I am a man,
I'm a man,
I am a man,
- I'm a man, - I am a man,
I am a man,
Take them away,
I am a man,
I am a man!
♪ Oh,,,
♪ We're there
♪ Oh, we're there
♪ Sent away
♪ Send away,,,
We have a verdict,
♪ Over there
♪ Death the answer
Fifty-eight of the 63 defendants have been found guilty,
♪ The drums tum, tum in the,,,
Of those found guilty,,,
forty-one have been sentenced to hard labor for the term of their natural lives,
♪ Say a prayer
♪ Hand prepare,,,
In light of the fact that mutiny has no appeal during the time of war,
♪ Sent the word to the world to beware
♪ We won't come back
♪ We won't
♪ Till it's over
♪ Over there,,,
the remaining 13 men,,,
the men identified as the ring leaders of the mutiny,,,
were hung this morning,,,
,,,shortly after 5:30,
May God have mercy on their souls,
Turns out I had to stay and fight,
By the time you read this I'll be gone,
But I wanted you to know why I went into Houston,
I did it for your future children,,,
for your future husband,,,
I did it for you,
so you and they shall not suffer
as we have suffered simply for being negros,
Enclosed is the promise ring I was going to give you,
I want you to use it as a means to secure your future
and redeem your honor,
In my heart,,,
I wish it didn't have to end this way,
Truly,
I'll always be by your side, Marie,
I love you,
William,