Briefs were submitted by more than 60 Fortune 500 corporations, dozens of universities and colleges, 22 state governments, and a number of members of Congress. The statements made it clear that the majority of the U.S. rulers today back affirmative action in higher education—a gain won as a result of the mass civil rights battles of the 1950s and ’60s, which shaped the social attitudes of tens of millions in the United States.

The amicus curiae brief that attracted the most attention was the one filed on behalf of 30 prominent retired military officers. They argued forcefully in support of affirmative action issues from the standpoint of the interests of the U.S military. The statement was signed by three former joint chiefs of staff—Gen. John Shalikashvili, Gen. Henry Shelton, and Adm. William Crowe—as well two former defense secretaries and 11 retired four-star generals, including Norman Schwarzkopf and Anthony Zinn.

The officers argued that affirmative action is needed “not only to remedy past discrimination, but to further other compelling government interests.” They said they have had to take special steps to increase the number of Blacks, Latinos, Asians, and Native Americans in the officer corps to maintain the cohesion and morale of the armed forces.

They noted that “race-conscious” policies are used by the military academies at West Point, Annapolis, and the Air Force Academy. A court ruling against affirmative action would have affected those institutions as well as the hundreds of colleges and universities that have Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) programs, which provide 48 percent of active-duty officers.

Flatly rejecting the Bush administration’s argument in favor of “race-neutral” policies, they said, “At present, no alternative exists to limited, race-conscious programs to increase the pool of high quality minority officer candidates and to establish diverse educational settings for officers.”

The 30-page document bluntly spelled out some of the problems the military brass have confronted in recent decades and how they have tried to address them by recruiting more members of oppressed nationalities into the officer corps.

Despite the official end of racial segregation in the U.S. armed forces through a 1948 Executive Order issued by President Harry Truman, the brief said, the last segregated unit was officially abolished only in 1954. “The Army initially resisted President Truman’s command to integrate, until heavy casualties and slow troop replacements during the Korean War required that African-American soldiers be assigned to fight with undermanned white units,” it noted.

After the units were integrated, however, only a small number of officers were Black or Latino. During the Vietnam War, Blacks constituted as much as 17 percent of the rank and file in the armed forces. But in 1968 Black enrollment at West Point and Annapolis was less than 1 percent, and by the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, barely 3 percent of commissioned officers were African-American.

“In the 1960s and 1970s, the stark disparity between the racial composition of the rank and file and that of the officer corps fueled a breakdown of order that endangered the military’s ability to fulfill its mission,” the document stated.

The officers stated that “perceptions of discrimination were pervasive” and that “white officers were simply unaware of intense African-American dissatisfaction with job assignments and the perceived lack of respect.” Of course, these were not just “perceptions” but rampant racism against Black soldiers. Nor was the problem that white officers were “unaware” of racism—they were the main source of it.

As a result, “Hundreds of race-related incidents occurred,” the brief reported. “In Vietnam, racial tensions reached a point where there was an inability to fight.”

It added, “African-American troops, who rarely saw members of their own race in command positions, lost confidence in the military as an institution.”

The officers explained that the U.S. military’s “racial problem was so critical that it was on the verge of self-destruction.”

In response, “the armed services moved aggressively to increase the number of minority officers and to train officers in diverse educational environments,” they state. “The service academies and the ROTC have set goals for minority officer candidates and worked hard to achieve those goals.”

Today, the brief reported, “almost 40 percent of servicemen and women are minorities.” About 22 percent are Black, 10 percent Latino, 4 percent Asian, and 1.2 percent Native American.

Some 19 percent of active-duty officers are members of oppressed nationalities—9 percent Black, 4 percent Latino, 3 percent Asian, and 0.6 percent Native American. This is a big change from the early 1970s, but still a substantial gap in composition between the ranks and the officers.

The report concludes that “the officer corps must continue to be diverse or the cohesiveness essential to the military mission will be critically undermined.” It argued that this is especially true now with an all-volunteer force.  
 
 
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