In pictures: Filming takes place at IWM Duxford for Tyler Perry’s Netflix war movie Six Triple Eight starring Kerry Washington and Ebony Obsidian
Just as they have done many times before, actors and film crews descended on Imperial War Museum (IWM) Duxford to make a movie – although this time, it tells the story of a lesser-known battalion of the Second World War.
Filming for Six Triple Eight, which is about the war’s only all-black, all-female battalion, took place last week at Duxford. The upcoming Netflix film is being directed by Tyler Perry and stars Kerry Washington, Ebony Obsidian, Susan Sarandon, Sam Waterston, Milauna Jackson, Oprah Winfrey and Dean Norris.
The 6888th Battalion contributed to the war effort by sorting through a three-year backlog of undelivered mail and delivering the mail to American soldiers far from home. In the face of discrimination, these 855 women – who served in the US, England and France – brought hope to the front lines.
Their motto was “No mail, low morale” and they managed to sort more than 17 million pieces of mail ahead of time. US Army leadership gave the 6888th six months to complete the mission. They did it in three.
In recent years, the story of the 6888th Battalion has finally been told and in March 2022, President Joe Biden presented the 6888th with the Congressional Medal of Honor.
[Read more: 30 pictures from IWM Duxford’s Battle of Britain Air Show, IWM Duxford features in Guy Martin’s Battle of Britain on Channel 4]
IWM Duxford already has items on display related to the 6888th in its American Air Museum, including a uniform of the type worn by Evelyn Martin Johnson, a member of the battalion. The caption reads: “Evelyn was one of a small number of African-American women who served with US forces in the UK.
“She joined the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (later the Women’s Army Corps) in 1942, and served until 1945, ending her service as a sergeant. Although trained as an orthopedic medical clerk, Evelyn was posted to Britain as a mail handler in the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion.
“Based in Birmingham, she worked sorting packages to clear a large backlog at the US mail depot. Her unit then moved to Rouen in France, to complete a similar task. Throughout her time in uniform, she experienced racism. ‘We knew
better than to do anything about that, because we could get court martialled. So we’d disregard it,’ she said.
“‘You have to remember segregation was still in, and many of the white military were from the South. Many of us were not. Some were from the South, some from the North, some from the West. But some of the Americans carried that segregation right over there’.”
