July 22, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 129 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
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THE CULTURE WE CREATE IN OUR ARMED SERVICES MATTERS; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 129
(House of Representatives - July 22, 2020)
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[Pages H3615-H3616] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] THE CULTURE WE CREATE IN OUR ARMED SERVICES MATTERS The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Brown) for 5 minutes. Mr. BROWN of Maryland. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Smith and my colleagues on the House Armed Services Committee for their bipartisan work on this year's National Defense Authorization Act. We advanced progressive ideals to support our military families; improve readiness; sharpen our technological edge; and foster American leadership, our alliances, and a culture that is in line with the values of our Nation. This bill is truly transformational when it comes to advancing diversity and inclusion, as well as fairness and justice, in our military. We are at an inflection point when it comes to race in this country, demonstrated by peaceful protests across the country and at a time when a pandemic has widened disparities in healthcare, education, economic opportunity, and housing along racial lines. Our armed services are not immune to these currents. The military has historically prided itself as leading in opportunity and advancement for men and women of color, but we have fallen far short of our expectations. Today we are still grappling with a military that doesn't fully reflect our country's diversity. Forty-three percent of the Active-Duty servicemembers are people of color, yet only two of the 41 most senior generals and admirals in the military are Black, and only one woman. As recent events have brought a reckoning in our society, we are still debating symbols of oppression. White supremacy, racism, and other toxic beliefs exist within our ranks, impacting how Black soldiers advance, their assignments in career fields, and how they are treated and assessed. African Americans comprise just a single-digit percentage of fighter pilots and navigators, only 5 percent of Army Green Berets, 2 percent of Navy SEALs; and only 0.6 percent of the Air Force's power rescue jumpers are Black. Structural racism still exists in our military formations. Fifty- three percent of minority servicemembers report they have seen examples of white nationalism or racism within the ranks. These issues didn't happen suddenly, but festered unchecked by a culture of indifference or intolerance. This culture extends to gender disparities we still see in our Armed Forces. We have made progress and, this year, witnessed historic barrier-breaking firsts: Chief Master Sergeant JoAnne Bass was selected as the first woman to serve as the highest ranking noncommissioned officer in a service component; Lieutenant Junior Grade Madeline Swegle became the Navy's first Black female tactical jet pilot; The U.S. Army just welcomed its first female Green Beret. However, there is more work to be done: Women have never exceeded 27 percent of nominations made by Members of Congress to the prestigious service academies; In 2009, more than 6,000 cases of sexual assault in the military were reported. The Pentagon estimates these reports amount to just 30 percent of assaults, primarily against women. Women and men, whose trust in their fellow soldiers has been shaken, need our support and for this Congress to step up. This year's NDAA takes important steps to create a more diverse and inclusive military. It builds on the work in 2008 of Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, Representative Hank Johnson, and former Members of this Chamber Elijah Cummings and Kendrick Meek. As members of the Congressional Black Caucus, they recognized years ago that the military was not living up to the potential unlocked in 1948 when President Truman signed the executive order removing racial segregation in the Armed Forces. Together, Mr. Clyburn, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Cummings, and Mr. Meek led the effort to create the Military Leadership Diversity Commission, whose recommendations in 2011 are the basis for many of the diversity and inclusion provisions found in this year's NDAA, which are some of the most significant steps towards diversity and inclusion [[Page H3616]] that Congress itself has taken since the desegregation of the Armed Forces in 1948. It seeks to foster opportunities for women and minorities. We bring new visibility to congressional nominations to our service academies to train a more diverse next generation of leaders. We create a special investigator to review and investigate racial disparities in the military justice system and personnel practices. We create a special prosecutor for sexual assault committed at our military academies. We foster and train a greater number of minorities within the special forces and aviation communities. We tap into the talent at our historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions. We hold the Secretary of Defense and service component leadership accountable for progress and give them the tools to make it happen. This package updates workplace and climate surveys to include experiences with supremacist and extremist activity, anti-Semitism, and racism, allowing leadership to understand the full extent of these beliefs and better tailor responses and disciplinary action. Finally, after decades of inaction, we reckon with one of the darkest periods of our history, the institution of slavery. This NDAA bans the display of the Confederate flag on Department of Defense property and directs the removal of the names from military installations of those men who betrayed their country--our country--and who fought a war to defend the institution of slavery. The culture we create in our armed services matters. Diversity and inclusion in our armed services matters. It enhances unit cohesion and it improves military effectiveness. We have known this since 1950. Our work is far from finished, but this year's NDAA represents an important step toward this pivotal moment. ____________________
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