ASU Study Reveals ‘Vast DEI Bureaucracy’ In Department Of Defense
By Matthew Holloway |
A year-long study by the Arizona State University Center for American Institutions examining the Department of Defense (DOD) has identified and soundly condemned what the authors refer to as the “Vast DEI Bureaucracy” that has pervaded the everyday operations of the Pentagon and the varied service academies of the U.S. Uniformed Services. Damningly, the report found that the DOD has spent millions in taxpayer dollars creating a culture of “race and sex-based scapegoating and stereotyping.” The study in and of itself is a brutal excoriation of the military under the Biden Administration and “calls for an immediate end to the Pentagon’s multimillion-dollar DEI bureaucracy.”
The study, “The National Commission on Civic Education in the Military,” was compiled by Commissioners Lt. Col. (ret.) Matthew Lohmeier, Karrin Taylor Robson, and John Cauthen, along with a team of ASU researchers who over the past year evaluated, “the history, evolution, and implementation of diversity and equity programs across all branches of the military and military academies.” The final report is titled, “Civic Education in the Military: Are Servicemembers More Prepared for Micro-Aggression or Macro-Aggression?”
Professor Donald Critchlow, Director of the Center for American Institutions, explained the findings in a release provided to AZ Free News, “Our research reviewed DEI policy in the military starting in the nineteen seventies to the modern day and concluded there are far more effective ways to promote unity and respect among military ranks than by spending millions annually to divide servicemembers by their gender or race.”
Critchlow added, “Just as private companies have abandoned the toxic advice of DEI consultants and programs, military leaders should end social engineering based on critical race theory and restore approaches that promote character and merit.”
The report opens with an Executive Introduction in which Critchlow definitively states, “Given its importance, the U.S. Armed Forces should not be a laboratory for social experimentation, especially one based on Critical Race Theory, a contentious and abstract social theory. Yet, as this Commission Report on Civic Education in the Military shows in great detail, Critical Race Theory is promoted within Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) training throughout the military from the Pentagon through the ranks and in our service academies.”
A sampling of the most egregious findings includes:
- “DEI themes dominate the training and education that members of the armed forces receive about their country. As ‘white supremacy’ and racism have become a central focus of DEI trainings, white supremacist racism is assumed to be the core problem of the nation and of the military.”
- “DEI training focuses on rooting out ‘white supremacy’ even though there is little or no evidence that there is a problem of white supremacy in the military. The massive hunt during the stand-down in 2020 located roughly 100 out of a force of 2.1 million.”
- “Spending on DEI programming is increasing. The DOD’s allocation for DEI projects jumped from $68 million in fiscal year 2022 to $86.5 million in fiscal year 2023. The Pentagon is requesting $114.7 million for fiscal year 2024.”
- West Point Military Academy offers a minor in “Diversity and Inclusion Studies,” with courses such as “Social Inequality,” “The Politics of Race, Gender, and Sexuality,” and “Power and Difference.” In the course description, the report reveals the courses as “an introduction to the theoretical concepts of post-modernism. This will include a focus on Feminist Theory, Critical Race Theory, and Queer Theory.”
- U.S. Navy training asserts that servicemembers who reject implicit racial bias are “potential problems” saying, “Participants who refuse to acknowledge how bias has affected their lives or the lives of others may invalidate the experience of those with marginalized identities in the room and cause them harm,” and instructs sailors to “Prioritize a continuing conversation, rather than attempting to shut the conversation down. One suggestion is to acknowledge the bias-denier’s comments and ask for other perspectives from the rest of the group.” A procedure which could be compared to a classic Maoist “struggle session.”
As reported by Task and Purpose, an Army directive has been aimed at rooting out “extremism” which includes “requirements set in the 2021 NDAA for service IGs to work with the Deputy Inspector General for Diversity and Inclusion and Extremism in the Military ‘to establish policies, processes, tracking mechanisms and reporting requirements for allegations of supremacist, extremist, and criminal gang activity in the Army,’” citing a statement from Sean Mackintosh of the Army Inspector General Agency.
As Lohmeier, a former Space Force commander who was removed from duty in 2021 after drawing public scrutiny to DEI training, summarized, “It’s no surprise that young people are turning away from military service in record numbers. As this comprehensive report illuminates, DEI indoctrination has become a core component of military training that begins for officers even at the service academies.” He continued, “How can we be prepared to confront our adversaries if our warfighters aren’t laser focused on the mission but instead are divided and distracted by ideology?”
The report makes several recommendations on how the DOD can remediate the situation and begin to undo the damage. It calls upon the Pentagon to:
- “Immediately end the DEI bureaucracy or pursue alternative avenues to affect positive change despite existing policies.”
- “Return to the military’s outstanding tradition of merit-based selections and promotions and nondiscriminatory equal opportunity.”
- “Make the syllabi for all humanities and social sciences courses taught at our military service academies publicly available.”
- “Provide educational training materials to enhance personnel understanding of American philosophy, politics, government, and the Constitution.”
Matthew Holloway is a senior reporter for AZ Free News. Follow him on X for his latest stories, or email tips to Matthew@azfreenews.com.
