White people and Audie Murphy: Difference between pages

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[[Image:Audie1.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Audie Murphy, the most decorated combat soldier of World War II.]]'''Audie Leon Murphy''' ([[June 20]], [[1924]] to [[May 28]], [[1971]]), was the [[United States]]' most decorated combat soldier of [[World War II]]. He later became an [[actor]] and singer/songwriter. Among his thirty three awards and decorations was the [[Medal of Honor]], the highest military award for bravery that can be given to any individual in the [[United States of America]], for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty." Murphy received every decoration for valor that the U.S. had to offer, some of them more than once, and five decorations by [[France]] and [[Belgium]]. He served three years active service as a combat soldier in World War II. Murphy was released from the Army as an active member and reassigned to inactive status on [[September 21]] [[1945]].

''For other uses, see [[White (disambiguation)]].''

----

[[Image:Photo eddiemurphy pamelaarcher.jpg|thumb|left|Audie Murphy and his wife, Pamela Archer.]]Audie Murphy was the son of poor Texas sharecroppers, Emmett and Josie Bell Murphy. He was born near [[Kingston, Texas|Kingston]], [[Texas]] (Hunt County). He grew up in nearby [[Celeste, Texas|Celeste]], [[Texas]] (Hunt County). He went to school in Celeste until the eighth grade when he dropped out to help raise his family. He also lived in the rural area of [[Farmersville, Texas|Farmersville]] and later at [[Greenville, Texas|Greenville]], [[Texas]]. Murphy was the sixth of twelve children, only nine of whom survived to see their eighteenth birthday. Food was scarce and the Murphy family was very poor. Before his ninth birthday, he had become a decent shot, hunting rabbits and squirrels to help put food on the table. Sometimes he could only afford a single shell in his rifle to supply meat for his family of nine brothers and sisters. He became a very good shot, a skill which served him well later in life. In 1936, when Murphy was twelve, his father Emmett Murphy, deserted the family and never returned. At twelve, Murphy left school and was hired out as a farmer's helper, ploughing and picking cotton at a dollar a day to help make ends meet. He also went to work in a combination general store, garage and filling station in Greenville, Texas. At sixteen, Audie was working in a radio repair shop when tragedy struck again. He became an orphan when his mother, Josie Bell, died. He had to place the three youngest siblings in an orphanage according to his mother's last wish.

A '''white''' person is generally considered to be one who is relatively light complexioned. What exactly is meant by it depends on the context in which the term is used. In the United States, it tends to be used for people of [[Caucasoid]] descent and [[Europe]]an heritage. In some countries the term may encompass non-Caucasoid groups of people which are otherwise [[phenotype|phenotypically]] European and of pale complexion, such as [[castizo|euro-mestizos]], [[quadroon]]s, [[octoroon]]s in the Americas; or non-European sub-groups of Caucasoids that may range from fair to dark and near "black" complexions, such as [[Middle East]]erners and [[North Africa]]ns.

<!--Gramaic, does this illustrate the absurdity of including the exceptions, when they in fact belong further down in the article. Reason as to why these populations are or aren't regarded and/or included as "White" is because every country and society has its parameters to that concept. “White” does not have a standard definition, and the American one is the least useful to be quoting in the opening paragraph. The article clearly states that "White people are associated to Western Civilization and Christian values"; this does not hold true for most Middle Easterners and North Africans (Caucasoids), but does hold true for light-mestizos or euro-mestizos and light mulattos, quadroons, octoroons (all non-Caucasoids, by virtue of their admixture, however distant) of the Americas that show nothing other than a European phenotype. Let’s just limit the opening paragraph for the simplest and earliest definition of the term, and then build up the article - including how some groups from place to place are either included or excluded - from there.

[[Image:Photo audiemurphy sons.jpg|thumb|right|Audie Murphy and his sons, Terry Michael Murphy and James Shannon Murphy.]]Murphy married actress, [[Wanda Hendrix]] in 1949. They were divorced in 1951. He did not have any children with Hendrix. He subsequently married Pamela Archer in 1951, with whom he had two children, Terry Michael Murphy (born 1952) and James Shannon Murphy (born 1954). Murphy was also a successful rancher and businessman. He bred and raised thoroughbred horses and owned several ranches in [[Texas]], [[Tucson, Arizona|Tucson]], [[Arizona]] and [[Perris, California|Perris]], [[California]].

Agreed. I've rewritten the utter bollocks we had there -- Clair.-->

In 1955, Murphy became interested in [[Freemasonry]]. He was encouraged by his close friend, Texas theater owner Skipper Cherry, to petition and join the [[Masonic Order]] in California. He returned to Texas to conduct his thirty two degree work and to join the [[Shriners]]. Murphy remained active in various masonic events and was a member of good standing at the time of his death in 1971.

''White'' is sometimes also used to describe the purported common [[ethnicity]] of these people, generally as a term of self-identification.

Murphy ran into a streak of bad financial luck and was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1968.

In [[North America]], and to a lesser extent other countries, the term ''[[Caucasian race|Caucasian]]'' is used for "white" people. [[Anglo-Saxon]] is a less commonly used synonym, and generally implies, and inaccurately includes, other Northern European ancestries not deriving from [[England]].

==Military career==

== Historic use of the term ==

[[Image:Photo audiemurphy.jpg|thumb|left|Audie Murphy]]

Desperately needing money, Murphy tried to join military in order to earn enough to help support his family. Murphy had tried to enlist in the Army in his native Texas as soon as the U.S. declared war due to the Japanese bombing of [[Pearl Harbor]] in December of 1941, but was rejected because he was too young. He was accepted into the U.S. Army after being turned down by the Navy, Marines and Army Paratroopers because he was too short standing at only five feet, five inches, (165 cm) tall and 110 pounds. He signed the papers a few days after his eighteenth birthday and was sent through Basic Training at [[Fort Wolters]], [[Texas]]. During a training session of close order drill at Camp Wolters he fell flat on his face and passed out cold. The company commanders tried to have him transferred to cook and bakers' school because of his baby- faced youthfulness, but Murphy persisted in becoming a fighting soldier. There he received the nickname 'baby' where his commanding officers tried to keep him from being sent to combat. After thirteen weeks of basic training, he was sent to [[Fort Meade, Maryland|Fort Meade]], [[Maryland]] for advanced infantry training. Murphy had to fight to be able to go overseas to see combat. He was then attached to Company B, first Battalion, fiveteenth Regiment, [[U.S. third Infantry Division]] and shipped to [[Casablanca, Morocco|Casablanca]], [[Morocco]] (North Africa). After helping wipe up the last of the Axis resistance, he and his unit were sent to participate in the Invasion of Sicily. Upon arrival in Sicily, he had his first encounter with death. He killed two Italian soldiers as they tried to escape on their magnificent white horses. When questioned by his platoon leader why he did it, he replied, "It was my job". Murphy contracted malaria while in Sicily. It put him in the hospital for several days while in Salerno, and on an occasional basis during the remainder of the war.Next, Murphy was involved in the Invasion of Italy. Murphy distinguished himself as an effective soldier by fighting his way out of an enemy ambush. When he returned he was promoted to Sergeant. He also received a Bronze Star for his actions in Italy. Then the third Infantry Division invaded Southern France on [[August 15]] [[1944]]. Murphy's battalion was in an ambush in which a friend of his, Private Lattie Tipton, was killed as he tried to accept some surrendering German troops. Murphy decided to avenge Tipton's death by taking a German machine gun and his grenades and destroying the German position and several others nearby. For this action he received a Distinguished Service Cross. Just weeks later, he received two Silver Stars for twice saving his patrol from a German ambush. Soon after that, he was given a commission as a second Lieutenant and went back to command the platoon he had served in. He was wounded by a sniper bullet in the hip and spent three months recuperating. When he got back, he led his men in the action that earned him the Medal of Honor.

[[Image:Lifemagazine audiemurphy.jpg|thumb|right|Audie Murphy on the cover of Life Magazine on [[July 16]] [[1945]].]]

The term ''white'' has historically been used in contrast to other [[racial]] [[colour]] terms, such as [[black]], [[brown]], yellow ([[Far East]] [[Asian]] or [[Oriental]]), and [[red]] ([[Amerindian]]), etc, all of which tend to be defined with reference to "white". In other words, a "black" or "brown" person is simply defined by having darker skin than a "white" person, and any given "colour" may often apply to unrelated peoples. In America "black" denotes African ancestry and "brown" is usually attributed to non-white [[Hispanic]]s, [[South Asian]]s (people of the [[Indian subcontinent]]); where in [[Australia]], for example, "Black" denotes [[Aborigines]] and "Brown" to South Asians, Middle Easterners/North Africans, etc.

Audie Murphy fought in World War II with such courage that he received every decoration for valor that the United States had to offer, plus another five decorations that were presented to him by [[Belgium]] and [[France]]. He was the most decorated U.S. soldier during WWII. Part of Murphy's appeal to many people was that he hardly fit the "image" of a war hero. He was a slight, somewhat skinny, shy and soft-spoken young man, with a boyish appearance (something he never lost throughout his life). Beginning his service as an Army Private, Murphy quickly rose to the enlisted rank of Staff Sergeant, was given a [[battlefield commission]] as second Lieutenant, and company commander. He was promoted to Second Lieutenant prior to receiving his Medal of Honor. Murphy was credited with either killing over 240 of the enemy while wounding and capturing many others. Murphy became a legend within the third Infantry Division for his heroism. He was wounded three times and awarded the [[Purple Heart]] with Second [[Oak Leaf Cluster]]. Murphy served the rest of the war as a liaison officer and then returned to Texas after the War. After Murphy's discharge from the service, he went back to Texas to be welcomed to parades, banquets and speeches. He even had his photo hung at the Texas State Capitol in [[Austin, Texas|Austin]], [[Texas]].

The Korean War broke out in June 1950. In July 1950, Audie returned to Dallas to join the 36th Infantry Division (Texas National Guard). If that division was re-activated, Murphy would have again found himself in a combat outfit. He had considered volunteering for direct military service, but the "police action" which the Korean War was called indicated that it would be a short term combat, and Murphy had little desire to pull a full-time hitch in a peace-time army. His final rank later was Major in the [[Texas National Guard]].

These terms were in more common usage in the beginning of the [[20th century]] as ethno-historians attempted to trace humanity's history through [[linguistics]], a process that has been largely superseded with the advent of [[Genetic fingerprinting|DNA analysis]]. At the turn of the 20th century, some scholars thought of white people as being the descendants of [[Indo-European]]s and divided them into two categories: [[Semitic]] and [[Aryan]]. It is now known that this early categorisation was highly flawed since; Semitic people, although Caucasoid, are not a sub-group of Indo-Europeans; "Aryan" was erroneously applied by European anthropologist upon themselves; and South Asians which are a caucasoid people, and in fact also a sub-group of Indo-Europeans as speakers of languages of that family, were (and by popular definitions still are) altogether excluded. Paradoxically, the term "Aryan", highly associated with [[White nationalism]], most correctly applies to South Asians.

===Medal of Honor===

Although the most prevalent term in casual conversation, the term ''white'' is increasingly rare in academic and formal discussions of racial demographics, but it is still often used in discussions of racial attitudes, particularly in the humanities, and in fields such as [[African American studies]] (Black studies), [[critical race theory]] and [[whiteness studies]].

Here is the [[Medal of Honor]] citation that explains why Murphy was awarded the medal:

Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Company B 1 5th Infantry, 3rd Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Holtzwihr France, 26 January, 1945. Entered service at: Dallas, Texas. Birth: Hunt County, near Kingston, Texas, G.O. No. 65, 9 August 1945. Citation Second Lt. Murphy commanded Company B, which was attacked by 6 tanks and waves of infantry. Second Lt. Murphy ordered his men to withdraw to prepared positions in a woods, while he remained forward at his command post and continued to give fire directions to the artillery by telephone. Behind him, to his right, 1 of our tank destroyers received a direct hit and began to burn. Its crew withdrew to the woods. Second Lt. Murphy continued to direct artillery fire which killed large numbers of the advancing enemy infantry. With the enemy tanks abreast of his position, Second Lt. Murphy climbed on the burning tank destroyer, which was in danger of blowing up at any moment, and employed its .50 caliber machinegun against the enemy. He was alone and exposed to German fire from 3 sides, but his deadly fire killed dozens of Germans and caused their infantry attack to waver. The enemy tanks, losing infantry support, began to fall back. For an hour the Germans tried every available weapon to eliminate Second Lt. Murphy, but he continued to hold his position and wiped out a squad which was trying to creep up unnoticed on his right flank. Germans reached as close as 10 yards, only to be mowed down by his fire. He received a leg wound, but ignored it and continued the single-handed fight until his ammunition was exhausted. He then made his way to his company, refused medical attention, and organized the company in a counterattack which forced the Germans to withdraw. His directing of artillery fire wiped out many of the enemy; he killed or wounded about 50. Second Lt. Murphy's indomitable courage and his refusal to give an inch of ground saved his company from possible encirclement and destruction, and enabled it to hold the woods which had been the enemy's objective.

== Who is white?==

===Post war illness===

The scope of the term ''White'' has changed over time, and varies from place to place. In the United States, the term usually applies to people of ethnic European descent or anyone that looks European with no other discernable non-European racial features. The strictest definition held by white supremacist groups around the world is that anyone of total ancient ethnic indigenous European ancestry is 'white.' (Although few actually insist on a genealogical record, and tend instead to make their judgement on relative skin colour.)

Murphy sufferred from [[Post Traumatic Stress Disorder]] (PTSD). His first wife, Wanda Hendrix claimed he had horrible nightmares and slept with a gun under his pillow. She claimed that he had at one time held her at gun point. He was plagued by insomnia and depression. During the mid-1960s he became dependent for a time on doctor prescribed sleeping pills called [[Placidyl]]. When he recognized that he had become addicted to this prescription drug, he locked himself in a motel room. He stopped taking the sleeping pills and went through withdrawal symptoms for a week. Always an advocate for the needs of veterans, he broke the taboo about discussing war related mental problems after this experience. In a effort to draw attention to the problems of returning Korean and [[Vietnam War]] veterans, Audie Murphy spoke-out candidly about his personal problems with PTSD, then known as "[[Battle Fatigue]]". He publicly called for United States government to give more consideration and study to the emotional impact war has on veterans and to extend health care benefits to address PTSD and other mental health problems of returning war veterans.

==Movie career==

In [[Haiti]], [[Cuba]] and [[Brazil]], lighter skinned [[mulattos]] (people of mixed [[Africa]]n and [[Europe]]an descent) of considerably more European ancestry and appearance are often considered "white"; in the United States or [[Canada]], those same people would always be considered "black", while in Europe they would be classed as 'mixed race' - used a blanket term for all people with multiple racial heritages (such as golfer [[Tiger Woods]]), not just [[mulatto]]s. British Afro-Caribbean slang includes the terms 'Red' for those with half-black, half-white ancestry, and 'Yellow' for those who are 3/4 white, 1/4 black. ''See also: [[One drop rule]]''.

[[Image:Photo audiemurphy movie.jpg|thumb|right|Audie Murphy in 1967 Western movie, ''40 Guns to Apache Pass''.]]Actor James Cagney invited Murphy to Hollywood in September 1945, when he saw Murphy's photo on the cover of ''[[Life Magazine]]'' on [[July 16]] [[1945]]. The next couple of years in California were hard times for Murphy. He became disillusioned from lack of work. He was broke and slept on the gymnasium floor of his friend, Terry Hunt. He finally received token acting parts in his first two films, ''[[Beyond Glory]]'' and ''[[Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven]]'' but his roles were very minor in these movies. Murphy's third movie, ''[[Bad Boy (1949 film)|Bad Boy]]'', was Murphy's first starring role.

===First starring role===

{| border="1" align="right" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="280" style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%;"

After returning home from World War II, Murphy bought a house in [[Farmersville, Texas|Farmersville]], [[Texas]] for his oldest sister Corinne, her husband Poland Burns, and their three children. The idea was that Audie's three siblings, Nadene, Billie, and Joe, who had been living in an orphanage since Murphy's mother's death, would also be able to live with Corinne and Poland and would become part of a family again. Unfortunately, six children under one roof created too much stress on everyone. The arrangement didn't work out as smoothly as expected, particularly with Nadene and Joe, so Murphy came and picked them up.

|-

! <big>'''Race in the [[U.S._Census|US Federal Census]]'''</big>

|-

|The 7th federal census, in [[1850]], asked for '''Color''':[http://c.ancestry.com/pdf/trees/charts/1850.pdf]

*white

*black

*[[mulatto]]

|-

|The 10th federal census, in [[1880]], asked for '''Color''':[http://c.ancestry.com/pdf/trees/charts/1880.pdf]

*white

*black

*mulatto

*Chinese

*Indian

|-

|The [[United_States_2000_Census|22nd federal census]], in [[2000]], had a "short form"[http://www.census.gov/dmd/www/pdf/d61a.pdf] that asked two race/ancestry questions:

Joe and Nadene wanted to stay with Murphy, but he was having a hard time surviving. Despite a lot of post war publicity and James Cagney's help, Murphy's acting career had gone nowhere. He was broke and sleeping on the floor of his friend Terry Hunt's gymnasium. Murphy's oldest brother Buck and his wife agreed to take in Nadene but Murphy didn't know what to do with Joe.

1.Is the person '''Spanish/Hispanic/Latino'''?

Murphy went to James "Skipper" Cherry, a Dallas theater owner whom he had previously befriended, and sought his advice. Cherry was a member of a consortium of Texas theater owners who were part of [[Variety Clubs International]] and was involved with the Variety Clubs International Boy's Ranch a 4,800 acre (19 km²) ranch near [[Copperas Cove, Texas|Copperas Cove]], [[Texas]]. Cherry arranged for the Boy's Ranch to take Joe in. Joe loved it there and Murphy was able to visit him, as well as Skipper Cherry frequently.

2.What is the person's '''race'''?

*White

*Black, African American, [[Negro]]

*American Indian or Alaska Native

*10 choices for Asian and Pacific Islander

*Other

During one of these visits, Murphy confided to Cherry that even with Cagney's help and acting lessons, he wasn't getting anywhere in Hollywood. In a 1973 interview, Cherry recalled, "He was discouraged and somewhat despondent concerning his movie career." Variety Clubs was financing a film called ''Bad Boy'' to help promote the organization's work with troubled children. Cherry called Texas theater executive Paul Short, who was producing the film, and suggested they considered giving Murphy a significant role in the movie. Murphy looked good in the screen test, but the president of Allied Artists did not want to cast someone with so little acting experience as a major character. However, by this time, Cherry, Short, and the other Texas theater owners had decided that Audie Murphy was going to play the lead or they weren't financing the film. Their money talked and Murphy was cast as the lead. He turned in such a fine performance that the Hollywood powers that be finally recognized his talent. As a direct result of this film, [[Universal Studios]] signed Murphy to his first seven year studio contract.

This census acknowledged that "the race categories include both racial and national-origin groups." See also [[Race (U.S. Census)]]

|-

! <big>'''Race in the [[UK_Census]]'''</big>

|-

|[[United_Kingdom_Census_2001|Census 2001]] asked for a person's '''ethnic group''':[http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/Classifications/ns_ethnic_classification.asp]

*White

** British

** Any other White background

*Mixed

** White and Black Caribbean

** White and Black African

** White and Asian

** Any other Mixed background

*Asian or Asian British

** Indian

** Pakistani

** Bangladeshi

** Any other Asian background

*Black or Black British

** Caribbean

** African

** Any other Black background

*Chinese or other ethnic group

** Chinese

** Any other

|}

===Autobiography===

Other difficulties of the term, in the [[United States]] for example, is that [[Turkey#Demographics|Anatolian Turks]], [[Arabs]], [[Iran]]ians, caucasoid [[Jew]]s (Northern/Eastern European [[Ashkenazim]], Iberian [[Sephardim]] and Middle Eastern [[Mizrahim]]), may also be seen as non-White by a majority of people, even though some people in these groups may look similar to [[Southern Europe]]ans; and in the case of [[Ashkenazim]], to Northern Europeans.

[[Image:Photo audiemurphy hellandback.jpg|thumb|left|1955 photo of Audie Murphy 955 photo that was taken for advertisement and art work purposes for the movie ''To Hell and Back''.]]

[[Image:Photo eddiemurphy pamelaarcher2.jpg|thumb|right|1955 photo of Audie Murphy and his wife, Pam Archer Murphy, as they arrived at the Los Angeles premiere of ''To Hell and Back'' at the Wiltern Theater on [[October 12]] [[1955]].]]

Murphy's 1949 autobiography ''[[To Hell and Back (book)|To Hell and Back]]'' became a national bestseller. The 1955 film, ''[[To Hell and Back (film)|To Hell and Back]]'' was based on his book. The film grossed almost ten million dollars during its initial theatrical release, and, at the time, became Universal's biggest hit movie in the 43-year history of the studio. It held the record as Universal's highest-grossing motion picture until 1975, when it was surpassed by [[Steven Spielberg]]'s ''[[Jaws (movie)|Jaws]]''. This film would not be released until October, 1955, but Universal believed the movie would be a big hit, so the studio gave Murphy latitude in choosing roles as long as they required a lot of action. Terry Murphy, who played Joe Preston Murphy (at 4), is Murphy's oldest son. Corinne, Charles Emmett (Buck), Vernon, June, Oneta, J.W., Richard, Eugene, Nadene, Billie and Joseph Murphy were the names of Murphy's brothers and sisters in real life. Murphy starred as himself in this film biography.

===Hollywood Walk of Fame===

In the United States, generally speaking, the biggest dilemma of ''White'' inclusion is for caucasoid Americans of [[Middle Eastern]] and [[North African]] descent; [[Berbers]], [[Turkey#Demographics|Anatolian Turks]], [[Arab]]s, [[Iran]]ians, [[Kurds]], [[Mizrahim]], etc. For the purposes of statistics they are always categorised as ''White'' by US government agencies and the US census, however, this racial classification does not always lead to a sense of inclusion for most of them, as they are often excluded from the general structural concepts of White-American society, and may even experience hostile rejection. Furthermore, while [[South Asian]]s are also anthropologically a caucasoid people - and recognized as such by the [[United States Supreme Court]] - not only are they excluded from the popular definition of "white" and the general structural concepts of White-American society as the above groups, but they are also excluded by US government agencies and the US census, and instead categorised as "Asians". ''For legal contradictions in United States Supreme Court rulings of "white" vs "caucasian", please see [[United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind]]''.

For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Audie Murphy has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] at 1601 Vine Street. In the twenty five years that Murphy spent in Hollywood, he made a total of forty four feature films.

==Music career==

By contrast in [[Europe]], [[Canada]] and [[Australia]] those same Middle Easterners and North Africans are almost never regarded as ''White'', neither by society's general understanding of the term nor by government institutions. Instead, they are regarded as ''racial minorities''. This latter understanding of the term in Australia has little to do with [[White separatism|White separatist]] exclusionism, but rather a traditional (and still currently espoused) definition of ''White'' which has never encompassed Middle Easterners or North Africans, and which unlike the history of the definition of "''White''" in the United States, has undergone continuous alterations to include an ever growing number of people. ''See also: [[Wog]]''.

In addition to acting in motion pictures, Murphy also became successful as a country music songwriter. He teamed up with talented artists and composers such as [[Guy Mitchell]], [[Jimmy Bryant]], [[Scott Turner]], [[Coy Ziegler]], [[Terri Eddleman]]. Many of Audie Murphy's songs were recorded and released by such great performers as [[Dean Martin]], [[Eddy Arnold]], [[Charley Pride]], [[Jimmy Bryant]], [[Porter Waggoner]], [[Jerry Wallace]], [[Roy Clark]], [[Harry Nilsson]]. His two biggest hits were ''Shutters and Boards'' and ''When the Wind Blows in Chicago''. [[Eddy Arnold]] recorded ''When the Wind Blows in Chicago'' for his 1993 album, ''Last of the Love Song Singers'' which is currently in release by [[RCA]].

==Death==

In the American context, where Middle Easterners and North Africans are grouped as ''White'' by government agencies, the [[Plebs|plebeian's]] contention of excluding these Caucasoid groups of North Africa and the Middle East from the "White" label is based largely on the argument that there is a significant Black sub-Saharan component in much of their populations; due to the importation of Black slaves, by Arab slave traders across the Sahara desert, with whom they mixed. It is undeniable that many Arabs in [[North Africa]] ([[Morocco]], [[Algeria]], [[Egypt]], etc) and the [[Arabian Peninsula]] ([[Saudi Arabia]], [[Yemen]], [[Oman]], etc.) have enough black African ancestry or are dark enough - at times being as dark complexioned as some African Americans - to be considered "Black" by popular US standards. However, at least for the Arabs of the [[Levant]] ([[Syria]], [[Lebanon]], [[Palestine]], [[Jordan]], etc.), though a good proportion can be as dark as Arabs from North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, just as many are lighter-complexioned by comparison, comparable to Southern Europeans, and can be more closely related to Persians &ndash; and vice versa &ndash; due to both the ancient slave trade and the wars that involved Macedonian, Byzantine, Roman, Holy Roman, Persian and other empires.

While on a business trip on [[May 28]], [[1971]], ([[Memorial Day]] Weekend) he was killed at the age of 46. His private plane was flying in fog and rain. It crashed on the side of Brush Mountain near Catawba, [[Virginia]], some twenty miles west of [[Roanoke, Virginia]]. Five others including the pilot were also killed.

On [[June 7]],[[ 1971]], Audie Murphy was buried with full military honors in [[Arlington National Cemetery]]. His gravesite, near the Amphitheater, is second most visited gravesite year round. President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s grave is the most visited. At Arlington Cemetery, the tombstones of Medal of Honor winners are normally decorated in gold leaf, but Murphy had requested that his tombstone remained plain and inconspicous. His engraved headstone reads as follows: Audie L. Murphy, Texas. Major Infantry, World War II, [[June 20]], [[1924]] to [[May 28]], [[1971]], Medal of Honor, DSC - SS & OLC; LM - BSM & OLC; PH & two OLC. (DSC-Distinguished Service Cross; SS-Silver Star; LM-Legion of Merit; BSM-Bronze Star Medal; OLC-Oak Leaf Cluster; PH-Purple Heart).

Additionally, the popular definition of ''White'' in the [[United States]] often excludes all [[Hispanic]]s, more so those from the [[Americas]] (even if of unmixed European descent, or of distant admixture but of European phenotype) and at times also questioning the ''whiteness'' of those from [[Spain]]. Of the countries of [[Latin America]], those that it can be said are composed of an overwhelmingly European population are [[Argentina]] and [[Uruguay]]. [[Chile]] and [[Costa Rica]] are also quite "European", and posses [[mestizo]] majorities in which the European element often dominates over the Amerindian, though very few would acknowledge that admixture and simply identify as "''White''". Countries such as [[Guatemala]], [[Bolivia]], [[Peru]], on the other hand, posses [[Native American|Amerindian]] majorities, and although they also harbour large mestizo minorities, these are on average much more Amerindian than European. Furthermore, [[Guyana]] and [[Surinam]] have significant [[South Asia]]n populations. Also, [[Haiti]] and the [[Dominican Republic]] are composed mainly of people of African or mixed African descent.

In 1974, a large [[granite]] [http://www.audiemurphy.com/roanoke.htm memorial marker ] was erected near the crash site.

Bestowing the "non-White" label upon ethnic European peoples of [[Southern European]], [[Eastern European]] (Slavic) and [[Ashkenazi]] (Northern/Eastern European Jewish) descent, is a serious point taken in an ideology that is highly espoused by many White separatists. This occurs even within countries such as [[Italy]], where northern Italians have been accused of possessing racially motivated separatist sentiments stemming from allegedly irreconcilable differences with [[Southern Italy|Southern Italians]]. Polls suggest that most Italians see this as a bizarre and confusing attitude and reject any 'racial difference' between the North and South of Italy.

==Honors==

Quite a few White Supremacist groups in the United States, however, have accepted Southern Europeans and Eastern European Slavic peoples as White. This is demonstrated in the written requirements to be part of white racialist organizations such as the [[National Alliance]]. The requirement for membership is that an individual be of 'wholly European, non-Jewish ancestry.' In recent years some American White supremacists have have formed an alliance with the peoples from the Middle East, North Africa and Central/West Asia, nominally ''accepting'' them, in an attempt to more effectively target Jews. While White supremacists do not consider the latter mantioned people to be 'white', they do hold a somewhat positive attitude towards them due to the same strict and separatist attitudes also espoused by some of their members.

On [[November 17]], [[1973]], the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital in San Antonio, Texas was dedicated to Murphy. A one-ton bronze, eight-foot statue of Audie is the fine work of sculptress, Jimilu Mason, who was one of Murphy's many admirers. He is dressed in battle fatigues holding a rifle with bayonet. Inside the hospital, is a museum that depicts Murphy's life and has items including a uniform, other clothing, books and pictures.

In 1996 the [[Texas Legislature]] officially declared his birthdate, [[June 20]], as "Audie Murphy Day". U.S. Highway 69 North, from North Greenville city limits to Fannin County line was renamed "The Audie Murphy Memorial Highway". In 1996, he was inducted posthumously into the [[Western Performers Hall of Fame]] at the [[National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum]] in [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]].

== Criticisms of the term==

In 1999, Governor [[George W. Bush]], also made the same proclamation declaring [[June 20]] to officially be "Audie Murphy Day" in the state of Texas.

One recent genetic study ''suggests'' that approximately 30% of self-identified Whites (non-Hispanic) in the U.S. possess some sub-Saharan Africa ancestry (from the population now called "Black" or [[African American]] in the U.S.). Among those Whites found in the study to have Black ancestry, they average an admixture of 2.3% Black (of 128 grandparents, 3 are Black and 125 are White). The author of the study, [[Pennsylvania State University|Penn State]] molecular biologist Mark Shriver, a self-identified White who had no idea that he had any African ancestry, discovered he was in fact 22% Black.[http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=15042002-084051-5356r] Many however have argued that the percentage rates are too small in most cases to warrant the abandonment of the umbrella terminology, contending that those Americans who retain some form of [[miscegenation|miscegenated blood]] due to [[interracial couple]]s are more often a rather invisible part of the populace. Indeed, Whites who have ancestors which settled in the [[Western United States]] during the 19th century may have American Indian and/or freed African American ancestors.

In 2000, Audie Murphy was honored with his portrait on the thirty three cent [[List of people on stamps of the United States|United States postage stamp]]. There is also an Audie Murphy Middle School in Fort Hood, Texas, named in his honor.

The broad usage of "White" is sometimes criticized by those who argue that it de-[[ethnicity|ethnicizes]] various groups, although the same charge is not leveled at the question of ethnic diversity within Blacks. During the era of [[Jim Crow Laws]] in the [[Southern United States]], facilities were commonly divided into separate sections for "White" and "[[Colored]]" people. These terms were defined by law, with people of northern and western European being labeled "White" and [[African-American]]s labeled as "Colored". The categorization of people of other ethnicities and mixed ancestries varied from state to state and in different municipalities.

===Military awards===

A more contemporary criticism is that many Black people have lived in areas of North Africa associated with Arab and thus considered "white". Mostafa Hefny, an obviously Black Egyptian, is among those whose original ancestors were from North Africa and who is classified as White, despite the obviousness of his Black identity and his socialization as a Black man in America.

*[[Medal of Honor]]

*[[Distinguished Service Cross (USA)|Distinguished Service Cross]]

*[[Silver Star]] with First [[Oak Leaf Cluster]]

*[[Legion of Merit]]

*[[Bronze Star Medal]] with "V" Device and First Oak Leaf Cluster

*[[Purple Heart]] with Second Oak Leaf Cluster

*[[U.S. Army Outstanding Civilian Service Medal]]

*[[Good Conduct Medal]]

*[[Presidential Unit Citation (US)]] with First Oak Leaf Cluster

*[[European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal]] with One Silver Star, Four Bronze Service Stars (representing nine campaigns) and one Bronze Arrowhead (representing assault landing at Sicily and Southern France)

*[[American Campaign Medal]]

*[[World War II Victory Medal]]

*[[Army of Occupation Medal]] with Germany Clasp

*[[Armed Forces Reserve Medal]]

*[[Combat Infantryman Badge]]

*[[Expert Badge]] with Bayonet Bar

*[[Marksman Badge]] with Rifle Bar

*[[Croix de guerre|French Fourragère in Colors of the Croix de guerre]]

*[[Légion d'honneur|French Legion of Honor]]

*[[Croix de guerre|French Croix de guerre with Palm]]

*[[Croix de guerre|French Croix de guerre with Silver Star]]

*[[French Liberation Medal]]

*[[Croix de guerre|Belgian Croix de guerre with Palm]]

==Filmography==

== Areas of habitation==

* A Time for Dying (1969)

* 40 Guns to Apache Pass (1967)

* The Texican (1966) aka Texas Kid (Spain)

* Trunk to Cairo (1966) aka Cairo Campaign; aka Einer spielt falsch (West Germany); aka Mivtza Kahir (Israel: Hebrew title)

* Gunpoint (1966)

* Arizona Raiders (1965)

* Apache Rifles (1964)

* Bullet for a Badman (1964) aka Renegade Posse (USA)

* The Quick Gun (1964)

* Gunfight at Comanche Creek (1963) aka Gun Fight at Comanche Creek (USA: poster title)

* War Is Hell (1963)(Was the narrator)

* Showdown (1963)

* Six Black Horses (1962)

* Battle at Bloody Beach (1961) aka Battle on the Beach (UK)

* Whispering Smith (1961) TV Series

* Posse from Hell (1961)

* Seven Ways from Sundown (1960)

* The Unforgiven (1960)

* Hell Bent for Leather (1960)

* Cast a Long Shadow (1959)

* The Wild and the Innocent (1959)

* No Name on the Bullet (1959)

* The Gun Runners (1958) aka Gunrunners (International: English title)

* Ride a Crooked Trail (1958)

* The Quiet American (1958)

* Night Passage (1957)

* Joe Butterfly (1957)

* The Guns of Fort Petticoat (1957)

* Walk the Proud Land (1956) aka Apache Agent

* World in My Corner (1956)

* To Hell and Back (1955)

* Destry (1954)

* Drums Across the River (1954)

* Ride Clear of Diablo (1954) aka The Breckenridge Story (USA)

* Tumbleweed (1953) aka Three Were Renegades (USA)

* Column South (1953)

* Gunsmoke (1953) aka A Man's Country (USA); aka Roughshod (USA)

* The Duel at Silver Creek (1952) aka Claim Jumpers (USA)

* The Cimarron Kid (1952)

* The Red Badge of Courage (1951)

* Kansas Raiders (1950)

* The Kid from Texas (1950) aka Texas Kid, Outlaw (UK)

* Sierra (1950)

* Bad Boy (1949) aka The Story of Danny Lester

* Beyond Glory (1948)

* Texas, Brooklyn and Heaven (1948) aka The Girl from Texas (UK)

''See also:'' [[Notable figures in Western films|Other notable figures in Western films]]

Countries with a majority of White ethnic Europeans include all the nations of [[Europe]], as well as some of the countries colonized by them through the [[15th century]] to [[19th century]]; such as the [[United States]], [[Canada]], [[Argentina]], [[Uruguay]], asiatic [[Russia]] and oceanic [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]]. In these nations, the relatively small [[indigenous]] populations were overwhelmed by White colonists from one or more European "[[Motherland|mother countries]]". The distribution of Europeans worldwide may be explained by the traditional argument that Europeans thrive best in [[temperate]] climates above about 30° latitude in both hemispheres, but do not fare well in the [[tropics]], except at high elevations. Indeed, Europeans have colonized most of those portions of the north and south [[temperate]] zones which had low indigenous population densities at the time of their "discoveries", which excluded [[East Asia]] but included virtually all other temperate regions.

==External links==

Whites are also nearly unique in that they exhibit a variety of hair and eye colours. In parts of the world north of 50° North latitude, sunlight is low and weak enough that people (and white coloured polar animals for that matter) with blond hair, blue eyes, and pale skin have an advantage over those with darker colouration. Benefits include resistance to [[rickets]], possibly [[frostbite]], and a suggested [[aesthetic]] appeal. However, the only major part of the world where such conditions exist is in northern [[Europe]] and western [[Russia]]. Parts of [[Alaska]] and western [[Canada]], and, in the Southern Hemisphere (south of 50° South latitude), a small section of South America including [[Tierra del Fuego]] and the [[Falkland Islands]] would fit the requirement as well, but they were thinly populated at the time of discovery and are now dominated by the descendants of European settlers.

* [http://www.audiemurphy.com/ Audie Murphy Memorial Web site]

Significant minorities of Whites live in the various [[Latin America]]n and [[Caribbean]] countries, [[South Africa]], [[Zimbabwe]], [[Namibia]]. Many of these nations have experienced considerable political conflict between the White minority (descendents of settlers from the former colonial power) and a mixed or non-European unmixed majority, heightening the sense of White racial identity.

[[Category:1924 births|Murphy, Audie]]

==See also==

[[Category:1971 deaths|Murphy, Audie]]

*[[Caucasoid]]

[[Category:American World War II veterans|Murphy, Audie]]

*[[Caucasian race]]

[[Category:American actors|Murphy, Audie]]

*[[Human skin color]]

[[Category:Hollywood Walk of Fame|Murphy, Audie]]

*[[Race and Intelligence]]

[[Category:Legion of Honor recipients|Murphy, Audie]]

*[[Validity of human races]]

[[Category:Medal of Honor recipients|Murphy, Audie]]

[[Category:People from Texas|Murphy, Audie]]

[[Category:U.S. Army officers|Murphy, Audie]]

[[Category:Irish-Americans|Murphy, Audie]]

[[de:Audie Murphy]]

==Further reading==

[[lb:Audie Murphy]]

* Karen Brodkin, ''How Jews Became White Folks and What That Says About Race in America'', Rutgers, 1999, ISBN 081352590X.

[[sl:Audie Leon Murphy]]

* Matthew Frye Jacobson, ''Whiteness of a Different Color: European Immigrants and the Alchemy of Race'', Harvard, 1999, ISBN 0674951913.

[[sv:Audie Murphy]]

* Noel Ignatiev, ''How the Irish Became White'', Routledge, 1996, ISBN 0415918251.

[[Category:Ethnic groups]]

[[Category:U.S. ethnic groups]]

[[he:האדם הלבן]]

[[pt:Branco (raça)]]