Congressman Mike Rogers, the Chairman of the powerful House Armed Services Committee, and Jim Banks, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Military Personnel, are demanding answers from Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on racially disparaging comments made by Kelisa Wing, the chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer in the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA).
In a letter to Austin, Rogers and Banks wrote: “Our society values the virtues of merit, hard work, and equality of opportunity which distinguishes our nation from others. It is outrageous that a DOD official whose job it is to oversee “worldwide K-12 education programs for the children of DOD personnel,” has engaged in racially disparaging comments with clear inflammatory language on her social media and in other writings. Her comments do not represent the American ideal to treat everyone with respect. In fact, they call into question the current Administration’s commitment to ensuring that an involuntary trait of birth, like skin color, is an irrelevant factor in one’s ability to access opportunity and advancement. Leftist woke politics have no place in our military’s mission to protect all Americans.”
Kelisa Wing has served as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Specialist since October 2021. Prior to that appointment, Wing served at DoDEA HQ as a Professional Development Specialist as well as an Elementary School Assistant Principal at West Point, New York, and 8th-grade Language Arts and Reading teacher at Faith Middle School in Fort Benning, Georgia. Wing is an Army veteran.
Wing has been involved with diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts for students and schools over many years and has authored several books on the topic. She was selected as a 2021 Equity Labs Nexus Fellow. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Maryland, a Master of Arts in Secondary Education, and an Educational Specialist degree with a concentration in Curriculum, Instruction, and Educational Leadership from the University of Phoenix.
In June, Wing publicly denounced White teachers on Twitter.
“I’m exhausted with these white folx in these [professional development]sessions,” Wing said. “[T]his lady actually had the CAUdacity to say that black people can be racist too … I had to stop the session and give Karen the BUSINESS … [W]e are not the majority, we don’t have power.”
According to dictionary.com, “caucacity” is a slang term used to make fun of behaviors perceived to be stereotypically white or to call out what’s seen to be a particularly bold instance of white privilege or racism.
Wing self-identified as a “woke administrator,” decrying “white nonsense” on Twitter.
“Where can I get a break from white nonsense for a while?” Wing wrote.
“A number of our colleagues, including members of the House Armed Services Committee, have joined us in demanding answers to this straightforward inquiry,” the letter continued. “To date, no meaningful answers have been forthcoming. This is unacceptable.”
DoDEA plans, directs, coordinates, and manages pre-kindergarten through 12th-grade education programs for school-age children of Department of Defense personnel who would otherwise not have access to high-quality public education. DoDEA schools are located in Europe, the Pacific, Western Asia, the Middle East, Cuba, the United States, Guam, and Puerto Rico. DoDEA also provides support and resources to Local Educational Agencies throughout the United States that serve children of military families.
Rogers was made the Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee last month. He recently won his eleventh term representing Alabama’s Third Congressional District.
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