Military's diversity drive rollback disregards insights from U.S.'s most catastrophic battles, according to Pentagon's DEI purge.
A naval flight instructor's courageous act transformed the life of the first Black naval aviator, Lt. Jesse Leroy Brown, on March 17, 1947. Lt. Roland Christensen, a white instructor at a Glenview, Illinois naval air base, approached Brown with an outstretched hand, breaking the icy silence between the new trainee and his colleagues.
Brown, a slim, black man from Mississippi sharecroppers, aimed to break the Navy's color barrier. Faced with dismissive comments and derogatory names from his fellow instructors, Christensen's moral support proved crucial for Brown's success. Brown eventually rose through the ranks, earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for valor during the Korean War, and bolstered America's pride as a Naval pilot.
The significance of Christensen's gesture transcends Brown's personal achievements. It symbolizes the powerful impact that inclusion and diversity have had on the United States military – a cornerstone of racial equality in modern America.
This racial integration shows not just in numbers but also in power. Despite deep-rooted issues with racism, people of color have risen to the highest echelons within the US military. As distinct institutions, the military values and embraces diversity, fostering close relationships among citizens of different religious, socio-economic, and ethnic backgrounds.
Combat veterans frequently express the strong camaraderie that emerges in the heat of battle. William Broyles Jr., a Vietnam War combat veteran, poignantly explains this bond in his classic essay, stating that comrades-in-arms are those one trusts implicitly due to shared sacrifice – a life-saving connection that remains, long after the noise of warfall.
However, some leaders question the narrative, as the Trump administration launched a purge of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across the armed forces and military academies. The Administration argues that a culture of "wokeness and weakness" has prevented the military from fulfilling its primary mission of protecting the nation.
Can military history serve as a compelling rebuttal to this argument? Research suggests that many of America's greatest military mishaps happened because of the lack of diversity in the armed forces.
Examining one of the nation's most significant military disasters, the Japanese's 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, historians argue that America's all-white military leadership succumbed to groupthink – a dynamic that arises when a decision-making body lacks diversity[1][2][3].
Groupthink leads to conformity, stifling dissenting viewpoints, and fostering an environment that resists outside perspectives. Ironically, the very diversity that the Trump administration is trying to erase from the military plays a vital role in mitigating this phenomenon and contributing to more effective and cohesive units.
Moreover, inclusive armies fare better than their homogeneous counterparts in combat, by displaying lower rates of desertion and resorting to innovative problem-solving on the battlefield[4]. Essentially, diversity leads to increased resilience in the face of adversity, thereby enhancing the overall performance of the military.
In light of this evidence, one must ponder whether the Trump Administration's DEI purge, by dismissing accomplished leaders like Charles Q. Brown and Admiral Lisa Franchetti, could jeopardize the United States military's efficiency and, ultimately, its ability to protect its people.
[1]: Irving Janis. (1972). Victims of groupthink. Houghton Mifflin.[2]: Barbara Tuchman. (1984). The March of Folly. Random House.[3]: Kyle Bibby. (2020). The Long Gray Line Bends, But It Does Not Break: A History of Integration and Resistance at West Point. UVA Press.[4]: Jason Lyall. (2011). Divided Armies. Princeton University Press.
- In the realm of education-and-self-development, readers can delve into books such as "Victims of Groupthink" by Irving Janis, "The March of Folly" by Barbara Tuchman, and "Divided Armies" by Jason Lyall, which explore how diversity within military leadership can lead to more effective and cohesive units and mitigate groupthink.
- As the discussion surrounding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the armed forces continues, sports metaphors like a diverse team being a well-rounded lineup in lifestyle and general-news media can help convey the benefits of embracing diversification. For instance, a football coach understanding the importance of having a mix of skill-sets in his players mirrors the need for a diverse military to address varied perspectives and combat stubborn problems effectively.
