The United States Air Force reportedly promoted a full-day bias mitigation and “allyship” workshop to Airmen which encourages them to use their “privilege” to be an ally to a member of a minority group.
An unnamed Air Force captain reportedly contributed to the development of the training, according to documents obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation (DCNF) after the organization filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. The captain also worked with Apple to develop a similar course for corporate employees at the tech company.
“Capt. [redacted] had the opportunity to participate in the program Education with industry and work with Apple during that time. A lot of the content came from Apple’s I&D team and is delivered to corporate Apple on a routine basis. We have tailored this for USAF,” documents obtained by the DCNF claim.
The 8-hour training’s objective is to identify and resolve bias, cultivate an “appreciation for diversity,” and “identify barriers to innovation,” according to the course overview. The DCNF noted in its report, however, that the organization was not given information on whether or not the course is mandatory for Air Force and Space Force personnel, or how many service members have completed the workshop.
The course introduction claims that behaviors of an “ally” include “changing to more inclusive use of language, and combating forms of prejudice against perceived outgroups such as racism, ableism, xenophobia, or other forms of discrimination. Outcomes of Allyship considered to be desirable by proponents include greater inclusion in the workplace and empowerment of outgroups.”
The course has participants watch several mind-numbing videos on “Allyship at Netflix,” awareness, social conformity, and more, which the training uses to allude to the ways “implicit bias” can manifest in human behavior.
Participants are also asked to respond to various scenarios that the course developers say they could encounter in real life.
“Karen is a female engineer working for a major oil and gas operator,” One such scenario stated. “One day while attending a training session to learn a new time-writing application, Karen asks a question about a feature of the new package. The instructor who is male responds by suggesting that as admin staff she does not need to learn about that feature. As an ally, how should you respond?”
The DCNF also obtained a 2023 newsletter from the U.S. Air Force which referenced several recommended resources for service members to learn about diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA).
“Airmen and Guardians (military and civilian) have consistently requested resources and guidance on DEIA this past year. In the table below, you can find tailored education and training resources that are designed to help you foster inclusion, build cultural competence, increase bias literacy, and strengthen talent management,” the newsletter read. The “training resources” included links to online workshops such as “Increasing Bias Awareness,” and “Mitigating Bias Awareness Through Allyship.”
TPUSA previously reported that not only have branches of the U.S. military consistently fallen short of new recruitment goals, but Americans have also lost confidence in the armed forces, reporting the lowest levels of trust in the military in over 25 years.
