This Memorial Day, we’re remembering the legacy of the WWII era unit, the 6888 Central Postal Directory Battalion. It was the only predominantly Black, all-women’s U.S. military unit to serve overseas, and is also the subject of a recent Netflix movie. Their mission was to sort through a backlog of more than 17 million pieces of mail and to deliver it to war-weary soldiers scattered across Europe, longing for words of encouragement from home.
They had six months to complete the job. They did it in three.
In April, the battalion, nicknamed the Six Triple Eight, became only the second women’s military group in U.S. history to formally receive the Congressional Gold Medal. During the ceremony, U.S. House Minority Leader, Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York spoke about the need to recognize the battalion’s accomplishments.