Thurgood Marshall (1908–1993), who would later become the first Black American to be appointed to the Supreme Court, undertook countless civil rights cases throughout his career. When the U.S. military sent forces to Korea in 1950, the all-Black 24th Infantry Regiment of the U.S. Army was among them. African American military service had long been championed by civil rights activists as a path toward acceptance because Black soldiers would be able to showcase their allegiance and patriotism to the United States and be rewarded with advancement. At first, Black troops fought in segregated units under the command of white officers. The push by activists and reformers like Marshall helped pressure President Harry Truman to issue an executive order mandating the integration of the military in 1948. However, integration was not equally enforced as many senior commanders ignored Truman’s executive order, and some units, such as the 24th Infantry Regiment, remained primarily African American.