{"id":58645,"date":"2020-12-21T23:00:55","date_gmt":"2020-12-21T23:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/12\/21\/consistent-widespread-racial-disparities-hurt-black-airmen-ig-study-finds\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:06:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:06:25","slug":"consistent-widespread-racial-disparities-hurt-black-airmen-ig-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2020\/12\/21\/consistent-widespread-racial-disparities-hurt-black-airmen-ig-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"Consistent, widespread racial disparities hurt Black airmen, IG study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An Air Force inspector general review<\/a> into racial disparities found widespread differences, year after year, in how Black airmen are treated as opposed to airmen of other races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The investigation, which the Air Force released Monday<\/a>, studied how Black airmen are affected<\/a> by law enforcement apprehensions, criminal investigations, military justice, and administrative separations. It also reviewed which career fields Black airmen tend to be placed into, promotion rates, professional military educational development, and leadership opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The result, said Air Force Inspector General Lt. Gen. Sami Said<\/a>, is clear: Across the board, and consistently over time, Black airmen were disproportionately negatively affected in each category, as compared to their overall representation in the Air Force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Air Force launched its effort to study racial disparities, and to survey airmen about race and their experiences in the service, in June, after the death of George Floyd sparked nationwide protests and movements to root out racial bias and inequality nationwide. The review also covered civilian personnel and Space Force guardians, as well as service members across the total force, both officers and enlisted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report that resulted found that enlisted Black airmen were 72 percent more likely than their white counterparts to receive non-judicial punishments from their commanding officer, and 57 percent more likely than white service members to face a court-martial, the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Young Black enlisted airmen are almost twice as likely as their white counterparts to be involuntarily discharged for misconduct. And Black airmen are 1.64 times more likely to be suspects in Office of Special Investigations criminal cases, and twice as likely to be apprehended by security forces, the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These results confirm the findings of a report the military advocacy group Protect Our Defenders released in May<\/a>, which found the military justice system disproportionately punished Black airmen more frequently than other airmen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The racial disparities hurting Black airmen also became evident at several points along their career paths, the report said. For example, on the enlisted side, Black airmen enlist at higher rates than would be expected, as compared to their proportion of the overall eligible U.S. population.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as their careers develop, Black airmen find themselves disadvantaged in subtle, but crucial ways. Black airmen are underrepresented in operational career fields such as pilots, and overrepresented in support career fields, the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because key career development opportunities, such as the best chances at leadership and education, are more frequently offered to airmen in operational fields, those who are in support jobs tend to suffer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s more, over the past five years, Black officers have been overrepresented in their nominations to attend professional military education, the report said \u2014 but when the actual selections for PME classes are made, Black officers are underrepresented. That gap is especially acute for senior developmental education, as opposed to intermediate developmental education, the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to promotions at key points in airmen\u2019s careers \u2014 for enlisted, to staff, technical or master sergeant, and for officers, to major, lieutenant colonel and colonel \u2014 Black airmen again find themselves at a disadvantage. The report found they are regularly promoted to those ranks at disproportionately lower rates than would be expected. And when Black airmen don\u2019t make colonel or master sergeant, for example, that means fewer Black airmen who can become general officers or chief master sergeants, resulting in a whitening of the service\u2019s upper ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Lt. Gen. Sami Said, Inspector General of the Air Force, promised to move quickly in studying issues of racial inequality affecting Black airmen in a June 24 interview. Said is shown here visiting members of the Air Force Inspection Agency at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., July 26, 2019. (Staff Sgt. Kimberly Nagle\/Air Force)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Air Force Times in 2016 studied six years of promotion data obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, and similarly found Black airmen, as well as airmen of other minority races, were consistently selected for promotion at lower rates than white airmen.<\/p>\n\n\n\t