Zeno St. Cyr was born in 1922 in St. Louis, Missouri. Although his family was from New Orleans, at the time of St. Cyr's birth, his father was playing in St. Louis with Louis Armstrong [Annotator's Note: Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong was a famed jazz musician originally from New Orleans]. St. Cyr thought growing up in New Orleans was alright. His father and mother were musicians. His father was also a contractor and his mother was a secretary and teacher. They lived in a four bedroom home that was owned by St. Cyr's grandmother. He and his siblings attended some of the better schools. Though the Depression was on, he remembers the recovery was underway. Since his folks were employed, there was little Depression impact on the family. He graduated from his high school, Gilbert Academy, in 1940. [Annotator's Note: Gilbert Academy was located in uptown New Orleans and was well respected as a strong and disciplined educational environment for young black students.] High school graduation was a significant event for St. Cyr. Education was important. He heard about Pearl Harbor when he was a teacher. The news came in the afternoon. It was a shock. More was learned later in the evening of that day. St. Cyr was aware of segregation within his community. His family always avoided confrontational situations. The children were taught to avoid segregated businesses and circumstances. This avoidance philosophy was created by generations before to prevent having to face uncomfortable situations. It was a conscious effort. His school was located on St. Charles Avenue which had affluent white families nearby. When there were reports by neighbors of students cutting up on the bus, his principal, Dr. Margaret Bowen, rejected the idea that it was students from Gilbert Academy or Xavier Prep because of the discipline instilled in them. That was the atmosphere in which he was raised. When war came on and St. Cyr was called upon to serve, he did not like it. He was drafted out of college when the draft age was dropped a year after Pearl Harbor. It was lowered from a bottom threshold of 21 years of age to 18 years old. The common comment that could be heard during that time was that more blacks should be drafted because the white mothers and daughters would be left with nothing but blacks to choose from as the war progressed and more white manpower was called upon for the fighting. The blacks chose to accept going into the service because they felt that they would go and fight for their share of the freedom they had in the United States.

Zeno St. Cyr received his draft notice, but he found that he was rejected during his physical examinations because of his knees and his eyes. He could type though. As a result, he would be accepted and placed in the office as a typist. He acknowledged the assignment as explained. No boot camp training was required for him to take on this position. With about 165 others from Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi assigned similarly for limited service, the men picked up their uniforms in Alexandria, Louisiana and then went on to Fort Jackson, South Carolina. At Fort Jackson, they knew that they were there as blacks or coloreds as they were called at that time. They were in what came to be called Section 2 in white units. No one in his group would march. After six weeks of training, they were assigned all over the camp. Some were clerks, some were ward boys, and some worked in the kitchens. St. Cyr felt alright about his job even though he was only a token black working in the administration of the whites. He was treated well and had no resentment about having to do office work because he was away from the fighting. St. Cyr followed the war because, in post headquarters, he had access to confidential information. He read about racial incidents that happened on other bases. He maintained a Class A pass which allowed him to leave base when he wanted. He often returned to New Orleans and home. New Orleans was busy during the war with troops and entertainment. He had a good time in New Orleans with its good night life and food. It was home to St. Cyr.

Zeno St. Cyr was secretary for the CDD Board [Annotator's Note: the Certificate of Discharge for Disability Board at Fort Jackson, South Carolina] which was a staff of doctors that evaluated soldiers. St. Cyr worked on the forms and paperwork required to discharge or transfer those soldiers that were reviewed by the Board. He was next assigned to do clerical work in Area 5 which was composed of black troops. He also served as an MP [Annotator's Note: military police]. He then returned to post headquarters, Section 2, Area 5. [Annotator's Note: No specifics related to Section 2 were given by St. Cyr.] That was where he would be eventually be discharged. Although there may have been one or two incidents of individual racism, St. Cyr did not have to face any institutional racism during his service. The officers over the units understood how things were. They were doing the best that they could. There was one incident that involved one of St. Cyr's five or six commanding officers that he served under. It began with a particular sergeant with many years of service. The sergeant had a reputation for excessive drinking and being demoted as a result. Soon after the demotion, the sergeant would regain his stripes. During the course of one incident when this individual was in the jail, St. Cyr was in an office space adjacent to his commanding officer. He overheard the officer refer to the black man in jail as a nigger. St. Cyr let the commanding officer know that he was present. The officer then corrected himself and referred to the jailed individual as Sergeant Hicks. Afterward, the officer asked St. Cyr to come into his office. At that point, the officer confirmed that St. Cyr had overheard his offensive terminology. The officer asked that St. Cyr not relate the incident to the black soldiers in his unit. St. Cyr acknowledged the request and confirmed that he would not do anything to dispel the favorable attitude the men had toward their commander. St. Cyr could tell the officer was sincerely sorry and the incident was dropped. During his clerical duties, St. Cyr would go on to do everything but sign the checks. The word of the end of the war spread quickly. There was elation. The question next was how soon a soldier could return home. With the point system, it looked like a long time before St. Cyr, with his mere 36 points, would be discharged. St. Cyr would eventually see the point requirements lowered. He was discharged in February 1946 after 38 months of service. It was a blessing not to have to wait so long to be discharged.

Zeno St. Cyr reflects on his 92 years of life and takes stock of surviving World War 2 without physical injury. His family life and career were very satisfying. Although he no longer has his wife, his family is a good support. He is now at a place where he can relax and it is a wonderful feeling. He thanks God for all the good things. Compared to others, St. Cyr had it easy in the service. It was like going to work every day. He had a liberal leave policy while in the service. He was Director of the Mimeograph Department for the hospital. [Annotator's Note: St. Cyr was based at Fort Jackson, South Carolina during World War 2.] His position was assigned to the WACs [Annotator's Note: Women Army Corps] after he was discharged. It is an important reference to know about World War 2. War is not glamorous. He left the Veterans of Foreign Wars because of their support of foreign policy involving wars where we had not been attacked. It was like interfering in the business of other people. War is a terrible thing. The National WWII Museum is important to show the past in order to learn from it. It is necessary to interpret the political situation behind the war. Today, there is a terrible situation of conflict abroad where fighting has been going on for a thousand years. He did not support the entry of the United States into Afghanistan or Iraq. It was the same in Korea and Vietnam. The problems came about with the change of adherence to the Monroe Doctrine. That Doctrine stated that you stay in your area and we will stay in ours. His challenge to future Americans is to try to enjoy your life while you are here. Select good political representatives. Protect the children of the world and where we might not be able to prevent abuse, God will tire of it and take care of the foolishness.