Of all the tragic events to take place in World War II, it’s often those which defy any firm explanation of what happened that feel the most unjust. One such episode is explored in Kenneth E Stewart’s The Port Chicago Incident. Told through current and archival stills, film, and interviews from historians and survivors, this short document thoroughly explores the tragedy and aftermath of the naval explosion in Port Chicago in July 1944 after ships SS E. A. Bryan and SS Quinault Victory detonated as (mostly) Black naval sailors were loading munitions into the former; 320 Black sailors lost their lives and hundreds more were injured, and the nearby town of Port Chicago was irreparably damaged. The subsequent work stoppage of 258 sailors and mutiny trial of the “Port Chicago 50” is also detailed. Prominent civil rights lawyer Thurgood Marshall took an interest and helped with legal strategy in what would become the largest mutiny trial in U.S. naval history.
This film paints a full, grim picture of the disaster and its likely cause. As it’s explained, frequent training exercises involving speed contests encouraged the sailors to sacrifice safety in the name of efficiency, and though no one knows why it happened, it’s believed these practices combined with lax equipment safety standards that were dismissed by superiors was the ultimate cause. Stats and facts are provided throughout in bold for emphasis, making it well-suited for note-taking and pop quizzes.
At just fifty minutes, The Port Chicago Incident delivers all the particulars and more of this tragic naval event, its wider context in naval history, and all of the event’s direct and indirect victims. On a technical note, the application of emphatic titles was helpful to remember key points but the font types and sizes were inconsistent to where it became noticeably distracting at times. Four stars, would recommend.
Which academic subjects will benefit from screening this historical documentary?
The Port Chicago Incident would make a valuable supplement to any history course teaching with film and academic librarians would do well to have it available to educators. Its brief run time can easily be slotted into a subsection or wider discussion on its subject matter. The World War II setting and the confusion following the explosion due to the prior Attack on Pearl Harbor are prime material for any naval, American, or war history course. The discriminatory and systemically racist treatment of the sailors can be examined in a war history, Black history, or civil rights history course.
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