The Servicemen's Readjustment Act was “a bill of rights for G. I. Joe and G. I. Jane,” providing opportunities for more than 16 million men and women, including over a million blacks, who served in the US military.

The act allowed payments covering tuition, books, and subsistence for up to four years of college or vocational education. It granted home mortgages at low interest, farm or business loans, and a $20 weekly “readjustment allowance” as veterans searched for employment.

The bill critically influenced postwar America. By1956 about10 million GIs had used benefits to earn degrees or enter skilled jobs. Black veterans’ dollars helped sustain many Negro colleges and increase African American literacy. Owning farms and businesses, they leveraged families, communities, and a black growing middle class. They were vital in the emerging civil rights movement.