SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C.— The Seymour Johnson’s African American Heritage Committee hosted a Tuskegee Airmen roundtable Jan. 3, 2023, at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina.

The event was held to celebrate Black History Month and included guest speakers from the Tuskegee Airmen Wilson V. Eagleson Chapter. The roundtable featured an open forum for all attendees to have conversations about potential solutions for reducing biases and racial disparity within the Department of Defense.

The Air Force defines racial disparity as “existing when the proportion of a racial/ethnic group within the subset of the population is different from the proportion of such groups in the general population.”

“We have to get out of our spaces and communicate with others around us and share our stories,” said Col. Dolphis Hall, 4th Medical Group commander.

Hall said he was surprised at how much he has in common with other Airmen as they shared their stories.

Chief Master Sgt. Peter Martinez, 4th Fighter Wing command chief, said one way to reduce biases aside from talking about them, is to educate Airmen from all levels and backgrounds.

“People grow up thinking one way because they were raised to think that these biases were okay,” said Martinez. “We had an entire lifetime of upbringing prior to joining not knowing any different.”

“We cannot continue to do the same thing and expect a different result,” said Gen. Charles Q. Brown, United States Air Force Chief of Staff . “We’ve got to challenge ourselves. I believe in challenging the status quo.”

The Wilson V. Eagleson Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen provides a platform to preserve the heritage and continue the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen. This Tuskegee Chapter has four of the 20 original Tuskegee Airmen who lived in North Carolina.