Why were minorities so important to the war effort?

Ethnic minorities served in the US armed forces during World War II. All citizens were equally subject to the draft.

Blacks were an important source of manpower for the armed forces in World War II as is shown by the fact that a total of 1,056,841 African American registrants were inducted into the armed forces through Selective Service as of December 31, 1945. Of these,

885,945 went into the Army,

153,224 into the Navy,

16,005 into the Marine Corps, and

1,667 into the Coast Guard.