The Richie Boys
Sunday night is one of the evenings that, no matter what, is the lull before kicking into Monday morning work mode. Different headspace. Sundays should be easy. We sometimes watch the old fart show 60 Minutes, but they do have interesting stories, and at least it is real journalism, or perhaps not.
Two Sunday evenings ago, the entire show was dedicated to one story. That’s rare. The story was about the Richie Boys. Neither Fred nor I have ever heard this story. I have become obsessed. I just bought a book.
The Richie Boys trained at Camp Richie, it consisted of 15,200 men, 2200 of them were German Jews who got out. 2200 Jewish German men were now American soldiers who gathered 60% of the credible intelligence. Most have led incredibly successful lives. It is an incredible story.
The question is, why was the story held back for so many years…national security? More importantly, why hasn’t this story been told over and over? Perhaps anti-semitism would not be as prevalent in America.
If you get a chance, watch the show. It always amazes me that in 2022, I had never heard this story.