The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and the Fight for Civil Rights

After Small completes his testimony, Veltmann continues to call each of the fifty accused sailors to the stand, hoping that their divergent stories and defenses will prove there had never been an intentional mutiny plot. A few of the sailors who testify had been excused from loading explosives due to physical issues. John Dunn, who weighed 104 pounds, had been told by a doctor not to load explosives due to his weak build. Similarly, Julius Dixson had been assigned to work only in the mess hall after having dizzy spells. A third sailor, Ollie Green, had broken his wrist, leaving him physically incapable of lifting explosives. In spite of these circumstances, all three of them were charged with mutiny for refusing to load explosives.

As the witnesses finish testifying, Admiral Osterhaus, presiding over the court-martial, asks them if they “have anything further to state” (135). While most witnesses decline, Green describes how the Divisions were racing against each other while loading explosives, with the white officers placing bets on which Division was fastest. Such stories had not previously been raised during the court-martial, and Green’s testimony is subsequently included in numerous newspaper articles, with the Navy denying that such a bet occurred.