We Fought the Navy and Won: Guam's Quest for Democracy
We Fought the Navy and Won is a carefully documented yet impassioned recollection of Guam's struggle to liberate itself from the absolutist rule of the U.S. Navy. Doloris Cogan concentrates on five crucial years, 1945-1950, when, fresh out of journalism school, she had the good fortune to join the distinguished team of idealists at the newly formed Institute of Ethnic Affairs in Washington, D.C. Working as a writer/editor on the monthly Guam Echo under the leadership of the Institute's...
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We Fought the Navy and Won is a carefully documented yet impassioned recollection of Guam's struggle to liberate itself from the absolutist rule of the U.S. Navy. Doloris Cogan concentrates on five crucial years, 1945-1950, when, fresh out of journalism school, she had the good fortune to join the distinguished team of idealists at the newly formed Institute of Ethnic Affairs in Washington, D.C. Working as a writer/editor on the monthly Guam Echo under the leadership of the Institute's director, John Collier, Cogan witnessed and recorded the battle fought at the very top between Collier (assisted by former Secretary of the Interior Harry L. Ickes) and Navy Secretary James V. Forrestal as the people of Guam petitioned the U.S. Congress for civilian government under a constitution.Part of the story centers around a young Chamorro named Carlos Taitano, who returned home to Guam in 1948 after serving in the U.S. Army in the Pacific. Taitano joined his colleagues in the lower house and walked out of the Guam Congress in 1949 to protest the naval governor, who had refused their right to subpoena an American businessman suspected of illegal activity. The walkout was the catalyst that introduced the Organic Act of Guam, which was signed into law by President Truman in 1950. Many other Guamanians, including the men and women who testified before the U.S. Congress, were invloved in this historic struggle. We Fought the Navy and Won is the first book to tell their story and the first detailed look at the events surrounding Guam's elevation from possession to territory.
Acknowledgments ixIntroduction xiWelcome to Guam 1The Institute of Ethnic Affairs 31Collier and Ickes Kick Off the Battle 39To Be or Not to Be a Strategic Trusteeship 45The Guam Echo 57The Fight for Civilian Government 69The Press Weighs In 84The Navy versus the Guamanians 97Rehabilitation of Guam Begins 105F.B. Leon Guerrero Goes to Washington 123Guam Assembly Walkout Spurs Congress 132Connie Barrett Goes to Washington 143Truman Decides by Decree 153Skinner Becomes First Civilian Governor 162The Organic Act Becomes Law 175Mission Accomplished 187Appendixes 191Notes 225Map and Photo Credits 235Index 237
