PATRICK AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. - Equitable treatment of all people is a moral imperative, the director of the Air National Guard told newly minted equal opportunity advisors at a graduation ceremony here Feb. 4.
"Our servicemembers in the National Guard and Reserve are indeed our most valuable asset," Air Force Lt. Gen. Harry "Bud" Wyatt told 87 National Guard and Reserve graduates of the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute's Equal Opportunity Advisor Reserve Component Program.
"As leaders we owe them our very best efforts – and it cannot be with closed minds that we undertake this endeavor. We cannot meet mission success without the expertise and dedication of our equal opportunity specialists and advisors."
EO programs have made important contributions to all Department of Defense servicemembers and civilians serving in an environment of dignity, equality and respect, Wyatt said.
Wyatt highlighted a photo of Army National Guard Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester, vehicle commander, 617th Military Police Company, Richmond, Ky., who received the Silver Star at Camp Liberty, Iraq.
Hester is the first female Soldier since World War II to receive the Silver Star.
New and evolving legislation may change to allow full equal opportunity for women, including in combat, Wyatt said.
"DEOMI graduates are the ‘change agents' that help to educate people on the need – the moral imperative – to be equitable in our treatment of all people," Wyatt said.
"Equal Opportunity Advisors recognize the responsibility to speak the truth in the face of adversity and injustice and are representatives of their commanders," he said.