| On Monday STARRS was informed by the Executive Director of the Secretary of Defense's DEI advisory committee that "due to unforeseen circumstances," "the Department of Defense determined" that the public meeting of the Defense Advisory Committee on Diversity and Inclusion (DACODAI) in Arlington, VA will now only be "open to the public virtually" through Zoom. On 18 April they told us we were not allowed to make short oral statements at the meeting—contradicting the Federal Register that stated members of the public could, and now they are saying the public is not allowed to attend in person—contradicting again what is stated in the Federal Register. The timing of DACODAI's last-minute announcement is very disappointing and highly suspect considering they knew well ahead of time that STARRS had 18 people, including retired flag officers, colonels and more who planned to be there in-person, and we told them these people had already made reservations to fly in from all over the country—including a commercial pilot flying in from Brazil. As former military officers, our purpose was to respectfully and quietly monitor the meeting and also during breaks meet and talk with our peers on the committee. Our presence there was not to disrupt but to show a representation of all those who are concerned about the negative effects DEI ideology has on the military. This decision to exclude from their public meeting those who have different opinions on DEI in the armed forces clearly shows their idea of diversity is ONLY about race and identity. It's NOT about the "diversity of thought" that so many Pentagon and military leaders say over and over again when talking about why "diversity" is important. It turns out differing points of view are actually not welcome. It also shows their focus on "Inclusion" is really only for them, not the rest of us. By their actions to cancel us, they are showing to the world that Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is only a scam meant to push a one-sided, biased left-wing agenda onto our military, making it weak. DACODAI's action only leads to the conclusion that WE are the "unforeseen circumstances" that made them too afraid to allow us to attend in-person. STARRS and its members and fellow organizations have been submitting very powerful, irrefutable statements on the damage the CRT/DEI agenda push in the military has caused. So many of you have been signing up to monitor their meeting in-person and via Zoom which shows them not everyone agrees with the one-sided views of this committee. This federal committee is paid by you, the American taxpayer, so attend and watch what agenda they are pushing on your military. The Zoom webinar starts at 9:00 am Eastern Time this Thursday (2 May) and Friday (3 May) and goes to 12:30 pm. Having a lot of people log in to watch shows how many people are monitoring their activities. Log on at 9:00 am Eastern this Thursday and Friday: DACODAI Zoom Webinar Video Teleconferencehttps://defenseculture-mil.zoomgov.com/j/1604992726?pwd=YmpkZkMyMzlQaHkrOS9iSkRJeVNQQT09Telephone: +1 669 254 5252 or +1 646 828 7666: Webinar ID: 160 499 2726 Note, with a Zoom Webinar, as opposed to a Zoom Meeting, your video is NOT shown and your microphone is muted at all times. Even if you can't watch the entire time, stay logged in. Tell your friends. Their agenda is here (pdf) or on our website which also has more information. Also tomorrow on Thursday at 1:00 pm Eastern, retired USAF Colonel Rob Maness will be having STARRS leaders on his show to discuss all of what has been happening with DACODAI. You can watch The Rob Maness Show LIVE on Patriot.TV, their Rumble channel, Rob's website or on his X/Twitter account. On Friday at 3 pm Eastern, watch Frank Gaffney's Securing America TV show on Real America's Voice network where he'll be interviewing experts who have been fighting against the divisive DEI agenda in the military (all of whom were going to be at the DACODAI meeting in-person): • Brig General Chris "Mookie" Walker, USAF ret—African American, Former Commander of the WV Air National Guard, Last Assignment in the SECAF DEI Office • Matt Lohmeier—former US Space Force Lt Colonel (#1 Major of 784 in US Space Force) and author of the best-selling book “Irresistible Revolution: Marxism’s Goal of Conquest and the Unmaking of the American Military" • Colonel Brandi King, USAFR (Still serving)--Ran the Air Force Rated Diversity Initiative • Kendall Qualls--African American, Former Army Officer, Founder and President of “Take Charge”, Board member of the National Medal of Honor Center for Leadership, STARRS BOA Member • Lt General Rod Bishop, USAF ret—Chairman of the Board of Stand Together Against Racism and Radicalism in the Services (STARRS) which is standing up against the DEI infection in the military; a former 7-time USAF Commander. • Scott McQuarrie--West Point graduate, distinguished attorney. President and Founder of Veterans for Fairness and Merit. Someone who has dedicated his life to ensuring the military focuses on merit and readiness and remain (or return to being) colorblind. We'll be posting all of these interviews and videos on the STARRS.US website as well as the powerful statements. Here are two submitted statements that we've already posted: • Center for Military Readiness Statement to DoD: Reassess and Revoke Harmful DEI Policies, Elaine Donnelly • Our Service Academies Must Discard Race-Based Admissions, Larry Purdy, USNA '86 ACTION NEEDED FROM YOU: Every American should be concerned about this committee advising the SECDEF to push a divisive agenda that is damaging the military. They had been operating under the radar with little notice until all of us started monitoring and calling out their actions. Their agenda does not like the spotlight. • Let your network (friends, colleagues, Congress, media) know that the highest-level Pentagon DEI entity imposing this agenda on to the rest of the military does not allow us to speak or attend their public meeting in-person; they're not interested in "diversity of thought" and they are not "inclusive" to opinions differing from theirs. • Send your network the Zoom link to watch the DACODAI meetings • If you have media/podcasts contacts and can get our above experts on their shows, let us know: [email protected] • Ask Congress why American taxpayers should be paying for a committee that only has one, biased point of view and pushing a divisive agenda on the military that so many oppose? Also ask why DACODAI has shut down all our attempts to dialogue with them to offer a different point of view on the issue. • Watch the DACODAI meeting, take notes, post on social media what they are saying, write articles, tell your political representatives, tell your network what's going on. You ARE making a difference; we are ALL making a difference. Continue to STAND against the ideology that is destroying our military. We're just beginning. |
