Foreign Policy - Thomas Ricks: Don’t Blame My Army for the Lack of Black Officers in Combat Commands - "it was apparent to me that there was little interest from the majority of minority men in going into the combat arms. In particular, black men ..."

Don’t Blame My Army for the Lack of Black Officers in Combat Commands




It is a well-known fact that the Army has struggled for decades trying to get more black officers to reach the highest ranks of the Army and especially the combat arms. This should be a surprise to no one.

But don't go blaming the Army for the inability to solve this issue. This is a multi-faceted problem and one which must be solved involving all aspects of American society: Army, academia, family, and community leadership.

In trying to resolve this issue the Army has gone through excruciating efforts to recruit more black officers into the combat arms. The Army has not failed, but has not made much progress. 

Previously, while I was in a position to observe the branch assignments of one of the Army's largest commissioning sources, it was apparent to me that there was little interest from the majority of minority men in going into the combat arms. In particular, black men were significantly underrepresented in the infantry, armor and field artillery branches. Correspondingly, the ADA, signal and logistics branches were overrepresented. As for explanations, none could be found. ...

Now, if you think the Army is the only service with this issue, think again. The Marine Corps has a similar issue with its combat arms, and the Air Force and Navy have the same difficulty, but within their own organizational structure. ...

http://ricks.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2014/09/18/dont_blame_my_army_for_the_lack_of_black_officers_in_combat_commands