Posted on Feb 21, 2022
Air Force base leaders speak out against community racism
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Col. Catherine Barrington has been stationed in Cheyenne three times since 1998. But she said she never knew she experienced a different community than her fellow airmen.
The commander of the 90th Missile Wing at F.E. Warren Air Force Base discovered not only was her command chief master sergeant encountering racist behavior, but so were families and their students off-base. She came forward in the past two weeks to ask for the support of Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins and Laramie County School District 1 Superintendent Margaret Crespo to address the issue.
“We’ve had children in our schools called a racial slur and get punished for it because it led to a fight,” said Barrington, who is white. “Those children are hurt. They don’t understand why they’re being called that. And the parents are left with the unfortunate responsibility of having to teach their children that they have to learn to endure that.”
The commander of the 90th Missile Wing at F.E. Warren Air Force Base discovered not only was her command chief master sergeant encountering racist behavior, but so were families and their students off-base. She came forward in the past two weeks to ask for the support of Cheyenne Mayor Patrick Collins and Laramie County School District 1 Superintendent Margaret Crespo to address the issue.
“We’ve had children in our schools called a racial slur and get punished for it because it led to a fight,” said Barrington, who is white. “Those children are hurt. They don’t understand why they’re being called that. And the parents are left with the unfortunate responsibility of having to teach their children that they have to learn to endure that.”
Air Force base leaders speak out against community racism
Posted from trib.com
Cheyenne
Racism
FE Warren AFB
Children
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 3
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Barrington said enduring hatred is a lesson she doesn’t approve of.
She requested commanders and senior leaders speak with their airmen and give them the opportunity to share their own experiences. Command Chief Master Sgt. Nicholas Taylor joined her in the inquiry, and said many of his fellow minority airmen reported being treated differently out of uniform.
Taylor described his own hostile interaction at a local store when he purchased a weapon. Taylor originally went in uniform to pick up a gun he had bought, which required an optic to be put on at a future time. He called ahead to ask if they had any availability, and the clerk immediately welcomed him to stop by. When he arrived out of uniform, her attitude shifted, and she told him they didn’t have time to serve him. The command chief said she was very aggressive and instead of arguing with her, he gathered his things and left.
“Other airmen have also experienced this,” he said. “And when they went in to buy ammunition, they would not sell the ammunition to airmen of color at all. So, they had to ask their caucasian counterpart to go in and buy ammunition on behalf of them.”
Barrington said after hearing multiple reports similar to his about the store, she has considered approaching the Air Force Disciplinary Control Board to take corrective action. If the business, or business owner, is not treating airmen in accordance with the military’s values, they investigate and notify the business to fix their discriminatory practice in 60 days. They must respond or institute the corrections, or the commander can enact consequences.
“There is due process,” she said. “But if I do that, I’m placing that business off limits for all of our military members. And our payroll is about $357 million a year for members who work on the base, so that’s a huge impact.”
Barrington and other community and military officials spoke in recent interviews with the Wyoming Tribune Eagle."...
..."Barrington said enduring hatred is a lesson she doesn’t approve of.
She requested commanders and senior leaders speak with their airmen and give them the opportunity to share their own experiences. Command Chief Master Sgt. Nicholas Taylor joined her in the inquiry, and said many of his fellow minority airmen reported being treated differently out of uniform.
Taylor described his own hostile interaction at a local store when he purchased a weapon. Taylor originally went in uniform to pick up a gun he had bought, which required an optic to be put on at a future time. He called ahead to ask if they had any availability, and the clerk immediately welcomed him to stop by. When he arrived out of uniform, her attitude shifted, and she told him they didn’t have time to serve him. The command chief said she was very aggressive and instead of arguing with her, he gathered his things and left.
“Other airmen have also experienced this,” he said. “And when they went in to buy ammunition, they would not sell the ammunition to airmen of color at all. So, they had to ask their caucasian counterpart to go in and buy ammunition on behalf of them.”
Barrington said after hearing multiple reports similar to his about the store, she has considered approaching the Air Force Disciplinary Control Board to take corrective action. If the business, or business owner, is not treating airmen in accordance with the military’s values, they investigate and notify the business to fix their discriminatory practice in 60 days. They must respond or institute the corrections, or the commander can enact consequences.
“There is due process,” she said. “But if I do that, I’m placing that business off limits for all of our military members. And our payroll is about $357 million a year for members who work on the base, so that’s a huge impact.”
Barrington and other community and military officials spoke in recent interviews with the Wyoming Tribune Eagle."...
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Anyone who does not believe this still goes on is living in LaLa Land. Have a friend from RVN days, he holds a Silver Star and 2 Purple Hearts, and he is black. He and his family have been harassed by MAGA a@@holes (identified by their hats) who seem to think they now have the right to do so. Sad to see too many look the other way on this kind of garbage.
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We have the responsibility to teach our children to be respectful of all...sad to hear that's not happening.
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