In this special episode of Battlegrounds in honor of Black History Month, H.R. McMaster and Lieutenant Colonel Bruce Robinson, US Army (Retired), son of General Roscoe Robinson Jr., the first African American four-star general in the U.S. Army, discuss his father’s determination and dedication to serve his country even as he confronted racial inequities in the U.S. military and how all Americans can learn from his leadership and legacy.
General Roscoe Robinson, Jr. was the first Black four-star general in the United States Army. A St. Louis native, Robinson entered West Point in 1947 and led forces in the Korean War and the Vietnam War. He was promoted to four-star general in 1982 and served as U.S. Representative to NATO's Military Committee in Brussels, Belgium. General Robinson received the Bronze Star and the Silver Star for his heroic service and valor and retired from the Army in 1985 after 34 years of military service. He also held a Master's in International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh. In 1993, General Robinson was recognized by West Point as a Distinguished Graduate. He passed away that year and is survived by his children, Bruce and Carol.
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Bruce Robinson is a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel and the son of General Roscoe Robinson Jr. After retirement from the United States Army in 2006, Lieutenant Colonel Robinson worked as a Homeland Security consultant for a software company in California. He holds a B.S. in General Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and an M.S. in Telecommunications Management from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
H. R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 26th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.
