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FACT BRIEF

Did the US Air Force secretary order reducing white males serving by 33%?

By Tom Kertscher
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NO

In an Aug. 9, 2022, memo, U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall directed Air Force and Space Force officials to develop a plan to meet diversity goals in recruiting officer applicants.

The goals were for 67.5% of officer applicants to be white and the rest minorities.

The goals “will not be used in any manner that undermines our merit-based processes,” the memo said.

Republican U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman, who represents part of eastern Wisconsin, included the memo in a statement he issued March 19, 2024.

Grothman's statement claimed that the memo ordered cutting “white males serving by 33%."

The memo did not order reductions.

Data cited by Grothman's office did not show that the goals would reduce white males serving by 33%.

As of Dec. 31, 2023, 76.1% of Air Force and Space Force officers were men and 69% of all members were white.

See a full discussion of this at Wisconsin Watch
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
U.S. Air Force Officer Source of Commission Applicant Pool Goals
Air Force Times Air Force leaders set new goals to diversify officer corps
U.S. Rep. Grothman U.S. Rep. Grothman: Statement on DEI agenda in the military
Google Docs U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman emails
Air Force Military Demographics
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Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.