ANALYSIS – Yes, he is “woke.” And, no, he should not be promoted to brigadier general. Let's be clear, I use the term woke to mean extremely left-wing policies, usually unwittingly based on neo-Marxist ideology that includes critical race theory (CRT); diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs; as well as extreme gender ideology.
As the Heritage's Foundation's military readiness panel concluded: “CRT is anathema to the core principles of the U.S. military, an institution that depends on a team approach, one where every member must rely on one another and not have to worry that his leader or his subordinates doubt their abilities or decisions based on considerations of race, gender, or ethnicity.”
And Air Force Colonel Benjamin Jonsson is definitely promoting CRT which makes him totally woke.
Thankfully, even after the months-long hold on military promotions by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) protesting military abortion access policies, was lifted this month, another Republican senator is now blocking Col. Jonsson's rise to general.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) is doing so because of Jonsson's stances on the military's racist DEI programs and his pushing of far-left books espousing CRT to fellow officers.
Col. Jonsson, a C-17 transport command pilot, first faced public criticism after submitting an opinion piece to the Air Force Times in 2020 titled, “Dear white colonel … we must address our blind spots around race.”
In it he accused his fellow “white colonels” of being the “biggest barriers” to addressing “racial injustice” in the military and being “blind to institutional racism.”
Jonsson ended the piece by encouraging white colonels to read the controversial anti-white book by Robin DiAngelo, “White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism.”
At the time his piece was published in July 2020, Jonsson was serving as vice commander of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
Col. Jonsson, who has two adopted Black children, which may have understandably influenced his views, wrote the opinion piece just days after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
In response, The Heritage Foundation published a scathing response via their Daily Signal news outlet:
He is one of several military officers in line for a promotion who have espoused “woke” views that more closely align with the Left's diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda than traditional American values.
“Col. Jonsson exhibited a toxic embrace of DEI policies that have no place in the U.S. military,” said William Thibeau, director of the Claremont Institute's American Military Project. “His public characterization of ‘white colonels'' blindness is inherently divisive and sends shockwaves through his command. When Jonsson addresses a group of airmen by race, he creates the exact boogeyman of racial tension he supposedly seeks to eliminate.”
Additionally, the Signal noted:
At the Air Force Academy where Jonsson served as vice superintendent, a “Diversity & Inclusion” slide presentation advised cadets to “use gender-neutral language and avoid terms such as mom and dad.” It also urged cadets to avoid the term “colorblind” and instead be “color conscious.”
One cadet writing under a pseudonym for the Washington Examiner, documented his experience with “divisive teachings” at the Air Force Academy. He wrote: “The leftist ideologies, including critical race theory and diversity, equity, and inclusion trainings, being forced upon us by academy leadership have divided the cadet wing from within, in a profession where unity is essential.”
This is why Schmitt is right to block Jonsson's promotion to general. The Military Times reported Schmitt's press secretary as saying in a statement:
“Senator Schmitt has long been an advocate for eradicating these DEI programs and hopes to resolve these issues to ensure that these divisive DEI programs don't continue to drive a wedge between military members and deepen the already existing recruiting crisis.”
It is time to draw the line. Keep blocking Col. Jonsson.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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