The General They Erased - William Harvey Carney

Sankofa Chronicles: A Black History Podcast · Aug 17, 2026 · 8m

William Harvey Carney charged a Confederate fortress through gunfire, took multiple bullets, held the Union flag upright while bleeding from four wounds, and delivered one of the most powerful lines in American military history. His action at Fort Wagner in July 1863 stands as the earliest by a Black American to earn the Medal of Honor. The Army made him wait thirty-seven years to receive it. Then the country forgot him entirely - including the film made about his own regiment. This episode puts Carney back in the center of the story where he belongs, and explains exactly why the institutions…