Coast Guard takes action against racist noose incidents
CNN reported on Thursday that last July a noose was found stuffed into the personal belongings of a black cadet on a Coast Guard training ship. Two weeks later the Coast Guard Academy's civil rights officer, who was preparing race relations training for cadets headed for the same ship, found a noose in her office. The culprit or culprits are still not known.
Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD), who led the call for a full investigation, joined CNN to discuss the incidents.
"There are some people who don't like the fact that our country is becoming more and more diverse," Cummings stated. He added that the situation at the Coast Guard Academy presents particular concerns, because "the last thing you want are your leaders not being tolerant."
When the black interviewer asked Cummings if the diversity classes themselves might be stirring up racist feelings that promote such incidents, Cummings reaffirmed the importance of the classes being a part of the cadets' leadership training. He also emphasized that avoiding discussions of racist attitudes does nothing to help eliminate them.
Cummings said he is sure that 99% of the cadets are "great young people" but "they should not tolerate it among themselves, because they will be judged by their weakest links."
US Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Thad Allen, who was about to deliver a speech on the subject to the cadets, explained to CNN why such behavior is particularly unacceptable in the Coast Guard. "We're a humanitarian service," he said. "We save people's lives. We have to watch out for each other when we're doing rescue operations."
He emphasized that cadets are held to the same standards of conduct as active-duty coast guard officers, and that this would be considered conduct unbecoming an officer under the Universal Code of Military Justice. If the perpetrators are uncovered by the current criminal investigation, they could face a court martial.
"The people we serve need to see a Coast Guard that looks like them," Allen concluded. "We need to understand the cultural differences and be sensitive to the fact that the people we're saving out there come from very different walks of life."
The following video clips are from CNN's Newsroom, broadcast on October 4, 2007.
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