Buffalo Soldiers – A Tribute

Prior to becoming a full-fledged teacher, I started out as a teacher’s assistant working at a school for students with emotional disabilities. Being a school that is specialized in helping students with behavioral issues, a less stringent dress code was in place to create a more comfortable atmosphere.

I mention this because one day, a member of the Behavioral Intervention staff was wearing a hat (pictured above), which one would not find in the majority of public schools throughout the U.S.

When I saw him wearing that hat, I was immediately enthralled. Not only was it a super-cool looking hat, but I was very well aware of the historic significance behind the inscription –  

Buffalo Soldiers were African-American soldiers who mainly served on the Western frontier following the American Civil War. In 1866, six all-Black cavalry and infantry regiments were created after Congress passed the Army Organization Act. Their main tasks were to help control the Native Americans of the Plains, capture cattle rustlers and thieves and protect settlers, stagecoaches, wagon trains and railroad crews along the Western front.

Both the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments participated in dozens upon dozens of skirmishes and larger battles of the Indian Wars as America became obsessed with westward expansion… About 20 percent of U.S. Cavalry troops that participated in the Indian Wars were buffalo soldiers, who participated in at least 177 conflicts.. Buffalo soldiers had the lowest military desertion and court-martial rates of their time. Many won the Congressional Medal of Honor, an award presented in recognition of combat valor that goes above and beyond the call of duty.¹

READY AND FORWARD .

Being a voracious reader of American-Western literature, I am well-acquainted with the story of the Buffalo Soldiers; more specifically the 9th and 10th Cavalry units, which the hat specifically commemorates. I had to have one!

So, I inquired to my colleague if it would be possible for him to get another one. Two weeks later, after I gladly dished out $20, I was proudly wearing a baseball cap that represented a very unique band of brothers.

The story behind the hat does not end there. It is only a precursor to a broader story I wish to share regarding the power of association; regardless of one’s race.

As the story goes…

One day I’m driving south on Interstate 95 in Virginia. A state, which during the Civil War, joined with other confederate states, and fought against the Union under a flag representing state sovereignty.

A flag, which in the years 1861 thru 1865, after several makeovers², also represented the goal to continue institutional slavery.

That same flag, which recently, on January 6th, in the year 2021, was defiantly held high in the air for all to see, prior to a mob storming the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington D.C.

For the record; there is nothing political about the above reference. I have nothing personal against Southern states, or Southern individuals. I love both. Technically, I am part of – both. Moral wrongs in life aren’t owned by any one state, or by any one political affiliation. They are owned by individuals. Wrong is just, wrong. It doesn’t matter what side of the aisle you sit on.

So, back to the story…

I am in the far right lane on Interstate 95, when out of the corner of my eye, I see a biker descending down a merge lane. Briefly I glanced over; enough to see that the biker was wearing a vest with patches on the front. Immediately, I became curious as to whether or not the biker was a 1%’er.

For those not familiar with a 1%’er, the term is used in reference to outlaw biker gangs who wear a variation of the patch below. The most recognized pop-culture 1%’er is the club called Hell’s Angels. (I am sure the other outlaw biker gangs have a problem with me writing that, and I’m pretty much a dead man now!)

Aliexpress.com.

Never assume! A wise person once told me that; advice I wish I was more consistent doing. Once the biker pulled in front of me, I realized not only was the biker not a 1%’er, he was an African-American veteran! The vest he was wearing represented his motorcycle club, and service to his country; while the inscription on the back boldly read – Buffalo Soldiers!

When I saw his vest inscription, I became somewhat goofily-happy, because it just so happened, on that day I was wearing my beloved-Buffalo Soldiers baseball cap!

Feeling a sense of association to a biker I had never met, I immediately got one lane over and sped up. As I am driving parallel with the biker, he is focused on the road in front of him, not even aware of me. To get his attention, I honked my horn.

(I have a bad habit of honking my horn at bikers. Luckily this time, I wasn’t threatened with death like I was before in the story – Don’t be an A**hole).

I could tell by his initial glance that the biker was a little puzzled by this crazy Caucasian trying to get his attention. But as soon as he saw that I was pointing to the inscription of my baseball cap, his face softened and he burst into a smile 🙂 

At that point, I gave him a thumbs up. In return, he gave me a thumbs up. It was a great moment! It reinforced the mantra, “humans have more in common than we have differences”. It’s not everyday you get to bond with strangers, and leave behind a positive first impression representing the truth that…

deep down we are all the same color… the color that we bleed.  

It may not be apparent with so much strife in life, but it is… God’s honest truth.

Written by T.K.

Chief Editor: Jade L.

*On a personal note, there was a movie released around 2002 titled “Buffalo Soldiers”, dominated in a cast by well-known caucasian actors. I feel that the title for this particular movie does a severe injustice to history, because the movie has nothing to do with the original Buffalo Soldiers. There is a movie out already with that title, which actually does justice to the history of the Buffalo Soldiers – so why would they do that?

1. https://www.history.com/topics/westward-expansion/buffalo-soldiers
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flags_of_the_Confederate_States_of_America

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