Once separated by fences and uniforms, military bases and the people who live and serve on them are interconnected with the surrounding communities in every way – except in their diversity. While today’s military is more diverse than ever, many of the “host” surrounding civilian communities are among the least diverse in the country. This means we are asking our service members to live in places where they they may not feel completely welcome due to their race, ethnicity, or religion.
As the Association of Defense Communities (ADC), we believe this is something we can help can change; we are committed to supporting our communities in their local efforts to create a more equitable place for all service members and their families to call home.
ADC’s One Military, One Community initiative is a platform for conducting national conversations within the greater military community working to ensure that military service members and their families will never have to face racism, intolerance, or inequality at their duty stations. The initiative will advance this goal by focusing on four key actions:
- Listening to those who have experienced racism and inequality, to ground our efforts in real life
- Understanding the issues of racism and inequality in military communities, to develop a strong analytical foundation upon which to act
- Planning for collective action in every defense community by creating and following a common roadmap
- Learning from each other through resources and engagements that enhance awareness, increase understanding, and keep the conversation relevant and alive.