top of page

It's time to get down to the          of the matter.

(race & the military)

A report from the Inspector General of the Air Force revealed that “The magnitude of racial disparity in military discipline and development opportunities is substantial. Military justice data concerning Article 15s and courts-martial rates, Office of Special Investigations (OSI) investigations, Security Forces investigations, and administrative discharge data provide empirical information showing racial disparity." 


"Similarly, disparities between Black and White Total Force service members in accessions and recruiting, promotions, leadership assignments, and Professional Military Education (PME) selections indicate racial disparities impact a Black service member’s opportunity to succeed throughout their time in service. The Department of the Air Force Inspector General (DAF) has known and monitored many of these indications for years, and previous attempts to close the disparity gap have not been uniformly successful. As such, well documented racial disparities persist."  Read the report here.

Here are facts taken directly from the report:

Enlisted Black service members were 72 percent more likely than enlisted White service members to receive Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), Article 15, commanding officer’s non-judicial punishment (NJP), and 57 percent more likely than White service members to face courts-martial.

Young Black enlisted members are almost twice as likely as White enlisted members to be involuntarily discharged based on misconduct. 

Black service members are 1.64 times more likely to be suspects in Office of Special Investigations (OSI) criminal cases, and twice as likely to be apprehended by Security Forces. Based on limited data, Black service members are investigated and substantiated for Military Equal Opportunity (MEO) sexual harassment cases at a higher rate than White members.

Enlisted Black service members are overrepresented in accessions when compared to their proportion of the eligible U.S. population. Black service members are underrepresented in operational career fields and overrepresented in support career fields, which may affect their promotion opportunities.

Since 2015, Black officers have been overrepresented in Professional Military Education (PME) nominations but underrepresented in designations to attend. The gap between nomination percentages and designation percentages is larger in Senior Developmental Education (SDE) than Intermediate Developmental Education (IDE). Enlisted PME are all “must attend” courses based on rank and promotion date. 

Black service members are underrepresented in promotions to E5-E7 and O4-O6.  Additionally, Black officers are underrepresented in Definitely Promote (DP) allocations for O5 and O6.  Black, permanent, full-time civilians are underrepresented in GS-13 through Senior Executive Service (SES) grades. 

Black service members voiced a consistent lack of confidence in the Department of the Air Force Inspector General (DAF) discipline processes and developmental opportunities compared to their White peers. 

A report from the Inspector General of the Air Force revealed that “the magnitude of racial disparity in military discipline and development opportunities is substantial. Military justice data concerning Article 15s and courts-martial rates, Office of Special Investigations (OSI) investigations, Security Forces investigations, and administrative discharge data provide empirical information showing racial disparity." 


"Similarly, disparities between Black and White Total Force service members in accessions and recruiting, promotions, leadership assignments, and Professional Military Education (PME) selections indicate racial disparities impact a Black service member’s opportunity to succeed throughout their time in service. The Department of the Air Force Inspector General (DAF) has known and monitored many of these indications for years, and previous attempts to close the disparity gap have not been uniformly successful. As such, well documented racial disparities persist."

Here are facts taken directly from the report:

These facts are disturbing by themselves, but the report warns that:

“The survey data, interviews, and group discussions confirm that racial disparity in DAF discipline and developmental opportunities is deeper than the quantitative disparity numbers indicate.  Analysis of DAF data shows racial disparity exists across the life-cycle of an Airman. The Racial Disparity Review survey analysis shows a significant percentage of Black service members lack confidence in DAF discipline and developmental opportunity systems.  In contrast, the majority of White service members have confidence in the AF systems. The write-in comments to the survey, discussions, and interviews clearly communicate that this disparity is significant, consistent, and personal to our Airmen and Space Professionals."


"The quantitative disparity numbers are indicators, symptoms, or cues of how the Air Force discipline system works and how opportunities to succeed are distributed. When combined with personal experiences, that often begin before members join the Air Force, these cues act as amplifiers resulting in a significant percentage of all DAF service members believing Black service members are unfairly treated in the military discipline process and not given the same opportunities to succeed as White service members.”
 

find sources for this section here

bottom of page