Executive Order 9981, issued by President Harry S. Truman, desegregated which institution?

Executive Order 9981, issued by President Harry S. Truman, desegregated which institution?

• A. The Supreme Court
• B. The United States Military
• C. Public schools
• D. Federal Civil Service

Answer: (B)

Executive Order 9981 targets equal treatment in the armed forces, making the U.S. military the institution it desegregated. Signed by Truman in 1948, it declared that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin. This established the policy of desegregation across the military branches and set a precedent that a unified, non-discriminatory fighting force was essential to national security and democracy at home. The other areas—public schools, the Supreme Court, and the federal civil service—were addressed by different actions and later developments, not by this executive order.