FRCE celebrates Black History Month > United States Navy > News Stories navy.mil - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from navy.mil Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The importance of representation, identity and diversity, particularly within the Navy family, were the focus of a national virtual Black History Month event Feb. 25.
“This month is not just about black history. Black history is our history. This is American history,” said keynote speaker Rear Adm. Stephen Barnett, commander, Navy Region Northwest.
Barnett is one of the just 8% of black Navy officers, a fact that isn’t lost on him.
“The black men and black women who came before me paved the way,” he reflected. “Just one generation before me, it was nearly unthinkable for a black person to become a naval aviator. I wouldn’t be here today with a star on and my actual wings on if it wasn’t for a bunch of aviation giants that went before me.”