special troop indoctrination program in Europe on discrimination in
public accommodations. He also introduced a voluntary compliance
program to procure open housing.[22-73]

[Footnote 22-73: Memo for Rcd, Timpane, 25 Nov 64,
ODASD (CR) files.]

The Gesell Committee had repeatedly asserted that discrimination
existed only in areas near American bases, and its most serious
manifestations were "largely inspired by the attitude of a minority of
white servicemen" who exerted social pressure on local businessmen. It
was, therefore, a problem for American forces, and not primarily one
for its allies. The civil rights office, however, preferred to
consider the continuing discrimination as an anti-American phenomenon
rather than a racial problem.[22-74] Fitt and his successor seemed
convinced that such discrimination was isolated and its solution
complex because of the difficulty in drawing a line between the
attitudes of host nations and American GI's. Consequently, the problem
continued throughout the next decade, always low key, never
widespread, a problem of black morale inadequately treated by the
department.

[Footnote 22-74: Paul Memo.]

The failure to solve the problem of racial discrimination overseas
and, indeed, the inability to liquidate all remaining vestiges of
discrimination within the military establishment, constituted the
major shortfall of McNamara's equal opportunity policy. With no (p. 579)
attempt to shift responsibility to his subordinates,[22-75] McNamara
later reflected with some heat on the failure of his directive to
improve treatment and opportunities for black servicemen substantially
and expeditiously: "I was naive enough in those days to think that all
I had to do was show my people that a problem existed, tell them to
work on it, and that they would then attack the problem. It turned out
of course that not a goddamn thing happened."[22-76]

[Footnote 22-75: For an example of McNamara's
extremely self-critical judgments on the subject of
equal opportunity, see Brock Brower, "McNamara Seen
Now, Full Length," _Life_ 64 (May 10, 1968): 78.]

[Footnote 22-76: Interv, author with McNamara, 11 May
72.]

Although critical of his department's performance, McNamara would
probably admit that more than simple recalcitrance was in