While Hugh Muir’s observations on the positive reception received by African American troops in the UK during the second world war are largely accurate (Intolerant Britain: history shows we’re better than this, Opinion, 31 December), the full story is more complicated. The presence of American soldiers was a temporary wartime expedient, and the treatment these young men received, particularly those who were black, was partially because they would not be staying. Moreover, while African Americans were certainly welcomed, this reflected not only British hospitality but also anti-American sentiment as much as a rejection of American racism. British publicans, for example, objected to being told by white Americans who they could or could not serve. As one Briton noted: “I don’t mind the Yanks, but I can’t say I care for those white chaps they’ve brought with them.”

Dr Simon Topping

Senior lecturer in United States history, Plymouth University

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