By KATIE LAUER | klauer@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
UPDATED: July 17, 2024 at 4:47 p.m.

Hundreds of Black sailors charged with mutiny and disobeying wartime orders in the wake of a deadly explosion at Contra Costa County’s Port Chicago in 1944 have been fully exonerated, Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro announced Wednesday.

The decision comes 80 years after the blast that killed 320 sailors and civilians; almost two-thirds of the victims were Black. It clears the names of 258 Black servicemen who were court-martialed, jailed and threatened for refusing to return to work loading munitions in the disaster’s aftermath — citing the dangerous conditions, lack of proper training and segregation of Black sailors who were given hazardous assignments on the naval base, which is tucked along the shores of Suisun Bay.


Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro signs documents exonerating 256 Black sailors who were unjustly court martialed in 1944 after the horrific Port Chicago explosion in California, as Navy Under Secretary Erik Raven looks on, Wednesday, July 17, 2024 at the Pentagon in Washington. (AP Photo/Tara Copp) 

“The Port Chicago 50, and the hundreds who stood with them, may not be with us today, but their story lives on, a testament to the enduring power of courage and the unwavering pursuit of justice,” Del Toro said in a statement. “They stand as a beacon of hope, forever reminding us that even in the face of overwhelming odds, the fight for what’s right can and will prevail.”

For several community leaders who have pushed for exoneration for decades, the Navy’s decision addresses a historic injustice by restoring equity to the treatment of these men — both on the naval base and in the courtroom.

Yulie Padmore, executive director of the Port Chicago Alliance who helped organize the upcoming Port Chicago Weekend celebration, said Wednesday’s exoneration is the answer to decades-long prayer.

“This illustrates the importance of revisiting just how much things have changed, in regards to the enhancement of our society,” Padmore, choked with emotion, said in an interview. “The hardest part is knowing what their families have gone through. Exoneration is our country coming together in a sense, amending and correcting past wrongs.”

The tragedy struck shortly after 10 p.m. on July 17, 1944, when lax military safety protocols sparked a massive explosion that effectively vaporized nearby cargo ships and facilities on the base, instantly killing both sailors and civilians — predominantly young Black men in their late teens to early twenties — and injuring nearly 400 others. Only a few bodies were ever recovered.

This image provided by Naval History and Heritage Command shows the wreckage of the Building A-7 Joiner Shop in the center and munitions pier beyond, from the July 17, 1944 explosion at Port Chicago naval weapons station near San Francisco. (Naval History and Heritage Command/Mare Island Navy Yard via AP) 

The blast shot a massive fireball into the night sky, sent a shock wave of flying shrapnel that flattened Port Chicago and measured 3.4 on the Richter scale in nearby Berkeley.

While the exact cause of the explosion was never determined, historical records put the blame on Navy leaders for circumventing proper protocol while training the majority of African American sailors to load munitions at Port Chicago.

In total, 208 were charged with disobeying orders, and 50 were charged with mutiny — the latter of whom were sentenced in October 1944 to confinement and up to 15 years of hard labor in what naval historians say was the largest mass mutiny trial in naval history.

Del Toro, sworn in as secretary in 2021, said the charges were “a tremendous wrong” that has haunted many survivors and their family members. He said the decision to exonerate the sailors came after a Navy investigation found legal errors made during the 1944 courts-martial trial, which erroneously tried the sailors as a group without appropriate legal counsel.

While the “Port Chicago 50,” as they became known, were released from prison in 1946, the convictions remained on their records.

Freddie Meeks was a survivor of the Port Chicago explosion. He is pictured in this July 14, 1994 photo and was pardoned by President Bill Clinton in 1999. Meeks passed away in 2003 at the age of 83. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello) 

Padmore said Wednesday’s exoneration is a groundbreaking moment for all involved, especially for elected officials and community leaders who have advocated for exoneration for decades, such as Rev. Diana McDaniel, a co-founder and president of the Friends of Port Chicago, whose uncle was one of around 1,800 men who worked at Port Chicago during World War II, and John Lawrence, who worked diligently on the formation of the Port Chicago Naval Memorial Magazine in Concord.

But the biggest relief, Padmore said, is to the African American sailors who were wrongly convicted and largely refused to talk about their trauma with family or friends and who have continued to weather that emotional weight for eight decades after the Port Chicago explosion.

“To be a part of this moment in time, it’s incredible,” Padmore said, explaining how she’s looking forward to celebrating during the Port Chicago Weekend’s four-day calendar of events. “This weekend is going to be one to remember.”

Several East Bay elected officials quickly lauded Del Toro’s decision Wednesday, including Congressman Mark DeSaulnier, who has pushed legislation advocating for justice and exoneration since being elected in 2015.

“Today our nation stands one step closer to fulfilling its founding promise of equality and justice for all,” DeSaulnier said in a statement. “I thank Rev. Diana McDaniel and the Friends of the Port Chicago 50, Congressman George Miller and John Lawrence, his then Chief of Staff, and Representatives Barbara Lee and John Garamendi for their efforts to help accomplish this monumental feat.”

While Rev. McDaniel celebrated the Navy’s announcement, she also lamented that so many people who were involved in this advocacy died before the sailors were officially exonerated.

“When I learned of the exoneration, I burst into tears. This has been a long-time coming,” McDaniel said. “It is so sad that (investigative journalist) Robert Allen, the Port Chicago 50 and the sailors who were penalized are not with us to celebrate. So many people have worked on this — a major wrong has been righted.”