AHC: Make a black or female astronaut part of the Apollo program

The challenge is to have either (or both) an African-American astronaut and a female astronaut part of the Apollo program and have them walk on the moon.
 
The female astronaut part would require a complete redesign of both the Apollo Command Module and the Lunar Lander. Unlike Soyuz, which had a forerunner of the space toilet, The Apollo spacecraft relied on condom-esque catheters for urination, only compatible with the male anatomy.
 
The challenge is to have either (or both) an African-American astronaut and a female astronaut part of the Apollo program and have them walk on the moon.

According to 'The Right Stuff' - if I remember correctly - the lack of black faces in NASA control rooms was a result of career choices. The explanation Tom Wolfe gave was that University educated Black Americans of the era did business or something else that other than engineering or being a military officer.

The higher profile of black Americans in the military is a post-Vietnam war culture change, or that is how it was reported at this end of the Earth.

As to women, again Wolfe points out that all the Astronauts were test pilots - all serving or retired military too - because President Eisenhower 'foresaw chaos' if NASA just took volunteers. Every Congressman or businessman who every donated to a congressman's campaign would be trying to get a son/nephew into the astronaut corps.

There weren't any female military test pilots at the time, certainly not with combat experience in Korea which most (all?) of the Mercury to Apollo astronauts seemed to have. A distinct shortage of black officers flying F-86's etc over North Korea too as I understand it.

So you would have to expand the Korean War era fighter pilot corps to include more black Americans and women, or alternatively change American society to make Ike think their ought to be astronauts from those groups had to be included. In an era when Washington DC resteraunt's were Whites Only. Good luck with that.
 
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USAF had several African-American pilot in training, like for Dyna Soar, Edward J Dwight Jr. or for MOL, Robert H Lawrence.
Those men could have fly on Apollo mission, why this is not happen is unclear until today.
non African-American pilot was transfer to NASA as Dyna Soar or MOL was canceled, (Lawrence died in airplane crash)

on NO Female Astronauts for NASA, that fault of John Glenn, who recommended no woman in space in hearing on Capitol Hill
despite a group of seven female test pilots has manage same rigid selection and testing as Mercury seven Astronauts.

irony after the Hearing the Soviet launch the first female astronaut.

IF NASA would launch woman into space they would fly segregated from Male
means Gemini or Apollo with all Female or male crew only, not mix. that was 1960s mindset

The female astronaut part would require NOT a complete redesign of both the Apollo Command Module and the Lunar Lander.
like the on Space Shuttle or ISS, the ladies would use a Adapter for "urine collection" and same bags for the "big business" the Male used on Apollo
 
Ed Dwight was selected by the Kennedy Administration but after Kennedys death he got jerked around and left NASA. Perhaps if Kennedy had lived then Dwight may have gone into space.
 
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