An Army diversity training briefing that took place in Georgia is currently undergoing investigation after photos emerged on Facebook showing that the event included a section on “white privilege.”
According to USA TODAY, the Equal Opportunity briefing took place at Fort Gordon, Ga., on Thursday and involved 400 soldiers from the 67th Signal Battalion.
According to a photo posted to a Facebook page, the instructor presented a PowerPoint slide entitled “The Luxury of Obliviousness” that included a bullet point about “white privilege.”
“Race privilege gives whites little reason to pay a lot of attention to African Americans or to how white privilege affects them,” read the bullet point. “‘To be white in America means not having to think about it.'”
Unsurprisingly, the post to Facebook generated quite a bit of outrage, and a spokesperson for the Army said in response that the Army will be investigating the briefing.
“The unit [Equal Opportunity] instructor deviated from the authorized topic and content which was provided,” explained Army spokeswoman Capt. Lindsay Roman. “To prevent further instances, all unit instructors will receive additional training on the importance of following Army EO training requirements.”
“The Army reflects the diversity of American society,” she added. “We are all members of one team.”
