Reinstitute Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Back in the Military

WHEREAS, the United States Military announced they will no longer recruit at prestigious Black engineering events; and

WHEREAS, Frank Kendall, the former Secretary of the Air Force, noted that eliminating any discussion of race or gender would have negative consequences, and that the Trump administration is "sending a strong message that white males are in charge again and they don't want to hear anything about gender or racial inequalities;" and

WHEREAS, West Point has disbanded the Asian Pacific Cultural Club, the Japanese Cultural Club, the Latin Cultural Club, the National Society of Black Engineers, the Native American Forum, and the Society of Woman Engineers, but allowed the West Point Polish Club and the West Point Humanist Club to remain; and

WHEREAS, According to the Department of Defense (DoD), in 2023, 30.4% of the military identified as belonging to a racial minority group; and

WHEREAS, Today's active duty military is more racially and ethnically diverse than in previous generations with the gender dynamic having changed over the course of the past 50 years, with more women serving in the military as ranking officers - in 2017 than ever before; and

WHEREAS, Racial and ethnic minorities in the military have grown steadily in recent decades with Hispanics the fastest growing minority population in the military and Black service members making up about half of all racial and ethnic minorities.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will continue to litigate for the inclusion of DEI initiatives within the armed forces; and

THEREFORE, BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that the NAACP will continue to advocate for civil rights protections, especially in hiring and promotions of ethnic minorities within the federal government where evidence has proven disparate impact.