Thompson: “Civil Rights Services and Diversity Initiatives in the Coast Guard”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
(WASHINGTON) - Today Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security submitted the following statement before the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure's Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Hearing entitled “Civil Rights Services and Diversity Initiatives in the Coast Guard”:
"As the Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, I too am extremely concerned about diversity and civil rights initiatives in the Coast Guard.
I have been pleased to work on legislation with Chairman Cummings to develop more transparency and accountability at the Coast Guard on civil rights. I look forward to moving this important legislation through the legislative process and to the President this Congress.
A component of the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Coast Guard is a capable and skilled force of over 48,000 men and women on active duty; 8,100 reservists; 7,000 full time civilian employees, and 37,000 auxiliarists.
Like the sea, the Coast Guard’s mission is broad and deep. It not only patrols our shores every day to protect this nation from dangerous people and dangerous things but it also plays an integral role in this nation’s port security operations.
However, that is not all it does. In the days after Hurricane Katrina, while many parts of this government seemed unmoved, unavailable or unconcerned, the Coast Guard stepped in and stepped up to rescue over four thousand stranded, frightened and desperate people from rooftops in New Orleans.
And it is because of the Coast Guard’s ability to rise heroically to a challenge and confront a crisis that I am confident that it will rise to address the monumental problems in its civil rights program that have been revealed in an independent study conducted by Booz Allen Hamilton.
After conducting a "top to bottom review and evaluation" of the United States Coast Guard's Office of Civil Rights, Booz Allen Hamilton released findings that can only be characterized as dismal.
They found:
The decentralized USCG civil right organization enables local directors to operate autonomously with limited interaction or oversight by the Office of Civil Rights;
None of the four operating units within the Office of Civil Rights have formal strategic plans in place that would feed into the overall OCR strategic plan;
The Equal Opportunity Manual lacks specificity and is outdated;
Members of the OCR and the USCG civil rights organization at-large do not respect the need to keep complaint information confidential;
There are no civil rights/EEO training requirements for USCG managers or supervisors; and
Twenty-five percent of personnel who should receive basic Human Relations Awareness training do not receive it and this training backlog compounds every year.
These are just a few of the findings that led Booz Allen Hamilton to make over 50 recommendations to revamp the Coast Guard’s civil rights program.
While these findings are scathing, unfortunately, they are not shocking.
But we have seen shocking incidents in the last few years.
In July 2007, a noose was found in an African American cadet's sea bag while he was serving aboard the tall ship, Eagle.
The next month, a noose was found in a white civil rights instructor's office while she was conducting civil rights training at the Coast Guard Academy.
It is my understanding that to date, no one has been held responsible for these incidents.
This atmosphere cannot be allowed to continue.
For the Coast Guard to move forward, its Office of Civil Rights must develop a comprehensive plan to address the deficiencies found by Booz Allen Hamilton.
But this plan cannot be merely cold words written on hard paper. It must have the support of the upper echelon of the Coast Guard and it must be etched in the hearts of it members as deeply as its motto “Semper Paratus” -- “Always Ready”.
Just as the brave members of the Coast Guard stand ready to interdict drug traffickers, stop human smugglers, and rescue people in distress, it must now show itself to be "Always Ready" to address the challenges of ensuring a climate free from civil rights abuses.”
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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Please contact Dena Graziano or Adam Comis at (202) 225-9978
