Black Brass

An excerpt from the NY Times - 

‘Is Austin on Your List?’: Biden’s Pentagon Pick Rose Despite Barriers to Diversity

With retired Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III’s nomination to be the first Black defense secretary, the Pentagon comes face to face with its record as a place where people of color struggle to climb. 

By Helene Cooper

WASHINGTON — Retired Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, who is on the brink of becoming the first Black man to be secretary of defense, rose to the heights of an American military whose largely white leadership has not reflected the diversity of its rank and file.

For much of his career, General Austin was accustomed to white men at the top. But a crucial turning point — and a key to his success — came a decade ago, when General Austin and a small group of African-American men populated the military’s most senior ranks.

As a tall and imposing lieutenant general with a habit of referring to himself in the third person, General Austin was the director of the Joint Staff, one of the most powerful behind-the-scenes positions in the military. His No. 2 was also a Black man, Bruce Grooms, a Navy submariner and rear admiral. Larry O. Spencer was a lieutenant general who was the arbiter of which war-fighting commands around the world got the best resources. Dennis L. Via was a three-star general who ran the communications security protocols across the military.

And Darren W. McDew, a major general and aviator with 3,000 flight hours, was a vice director overseeing the plans the Joint Staff churns out.

At one point in 2010, the men thought they should capture the moment for posterity since nothing like that had happened before and likely would not happen again. They summoned the man who had made it happen, their boss, Adm. Mike Mullen, President Barack Obama’s chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, into a room for a photo.

“What is this about?” Admiral Mullen asked when he walked in.

“History,” General McDew replied.

From left, Brig. Gen. Michael T. Harrison, Lt. Gen. Larry O. Spencer,
Lt. Gen. Dennis L. Via, Adm. Mike Mullen, Lt. Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III,
Rear Adm. Bruce Grooms and Maj. Gen. Darren W. McDew in 2010.
Most of these men went on to higher ranks.Credit...via Darren W. McDew

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/us/politics/biden-lloyd-austin-defense-secretary.html?referringSource=articleShare