March for Good Trouble

Review by Bill Doughty––

We remember Civil Rights icon John Lewis, whose life and legacy are being commemorated and celebrated this week.

"March: Book Three" is written by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin with art by Nate Powell (Top Shelf Productions; 2016). It's a powerful "graphic novel" of nonfiction, and this is the best in the series.

The book opens with an explosion –– the bombing of the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, resulting in the murders of four young black girls: Addie Mae Collins, Carole Robertson, Cynthia Wesley, and Denise McNair.

In the aftermath of the killings and in the midst of taunts of "2-4-6-8; we don't want to integrate," a group of white Eagle scouts, coming from a Ku Klux Klan rally, shot and killed 13-year-old Virgil Lamar Ware. Then, police shot 16-year-old Johnny Robinson.

It was 1963. John Lewis was only 23 years old and already a student leader in America's civil rights movement and an acolyte of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Like MLK, Lewis preached and practiced Gandhi-influenced nonviolence –– even in the face of deadly violence. Alabama Governor George Wallace had declared "segregation forever" and was quoted in a newspaper saying, "What this country needs is a few first-class funerals."

Lewis reflects on his grief over the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, a man who had pledged greater civil rights. It took Kennedy's successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson, to achieve JFK's goal. (Both presidents were Navy veterans.)

In "March 3" we are introduced to women of the movement and see the pivotal role they played in demonstrating, protesting and marching: Fannie Lou Hamer, Margaret Moore, Ella Baker, Amelia Boynton, Diane Nash, Annie Lee Cooper, and of course Rosa Parks. Another women, Viola Liuzzo, was shot dead while helping shuttle demonstrators.

Brave women and men, black and white, stood up to face heavily armed paramilitary police, some in an armored personnel carrier. Lewis was called an "outside agitator," even though he was as much an Alabama citizen, as was the sheriff. He and his fellow students, teachers and other demonstrators wanted free and equal access to the voting booth.

This book is a march through history, with stark images of violence and transcendent images and words of victory. Lewis's optimism, humility and grace shine through, as we see the passage of the Civil Rights Act, Summer of '64 in Mississippi, Bloody Sunday, March to Montgomery, and signing of the Voting Rights Act in 1965.

This book shows Lewis's steadfast resilience and commitment in the face of severe beatings, lengthy arrests and constant threats. His demands for federal assistance ––not reliance on individual states' justice systems –– eventually paid off. So did his steadfast belief in nonviolence, "making good trouble –– necessary trouble."

LBJ said, "It's all of us who must overcome the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice. And we shall overcome."

"March 3" poignantly includes memorable moments from January 20, 2009, the day Barack Obama became the first African American president. 

One of the illustrations is of United States Navy Band "Sea Chanters" chorus performing the national anthem.

Another is of Obama handing Lewis a thank you note, "Because of you, John" –– signed Barack Obama.

See Navy Reads posts related to or honoring John Lewis, namesake of USNS John Lewis.

An Armed Forces Body Bearer Team carries the flag draped casket of Rep. John Lewis, Dem.-Ga., at Joint Base Andrews, Md., July 27, 2020. DoD personnel are honoring the congressman by providing military funeral honors to his congressional funeral events. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Bridgitte Taylor)

An Armed Forces Body Bearer Team carries a flag-draped casket of Rep. John Lewis at the U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., July 27, 2020. The remains will lie in state on the East Front Steps of the Capitol for a public viewing. (U.S. Army photos by Spc. Zachery Perkins)

People First, Mission Always

A Turkish army soldier briefs U.S. Army Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal on the situation at a police check-point in Kabul province. (PO1 Mark O'Donald)

Review by Bill Doughty––

The military adage "mission first, people always" is reversed in real life and on the best teams. It's about people, first and foremost.

"Good people purposely and proactively put people first in their decision making," writes Anthony Tjan in "Good People: The Only Leadership Decision That Really Matters" (Penguin Random House, 2017).

Raising Commitment core value banner at Norco (Greg Votjko)

Missions cannot be planned, trained for, or carried out successfully without good people of good character –– starting  in leadership positions.

Good leaders put good people for their teams. They continually seek to improve themselves; they instill core values; they strive for balance; and, they believe goodness is something that needs to be habitual and practiced even when no one is looking.

They are not in it only for themselves.

Putting goodness into practice means, in part, being a mentor. Tjan challenges readers to strive to provide inspiration and positive influence to at least ten other people. Using an eclectic group of people, he shows how they can share the "North Star" of good character.

He describes how the great Navy veteran jazz artist Clark Terry ("known by his friends as CT"), then in his eighties, mentored a 20-year-old musical prodigy named Justin Kauflin. Terry was losing his eyesight due to diabetes; Kauflin was blind.

CT had mentored Quincy Jones decades earlier; Quincy heard Justin play piano at CT's home and sponsored him. And Jones introduced Justin at the 47th Montreux Jazz Festival. See the video of a performance dedicated to Clark Terry:

The bond between Justin and Clark Terry is chronicled in "Keep on Keepin' On," a documentary, which opens with a letter CT once wrote to young Kauflin, and published in "Good People":

"Dear Justin, challenges are a part of life. As you know, your mind is a powerful asset. Use it for positive thoughts and you'll learn what I learned. I believe in your talents and I believe in you."

Clark Terry and Justin Kauflin provide a good "soundtrack for this book." (By the way, if you like laid-back quiet jazz, check out jazzgroove.org.)

Other folks featured, mentioned or quoted in "Good People" –– in no particular order –– include Tom Brady, Bono, Tippi Hedron, Brené Brown, Dalai Lama, Coach John Wooden, Herbie Hancock, Charlie Chaplin, JFK, Lee Kuan Yew, C. S. Lewis, Alice Waters, Warren Buffet. Trader Joe's Doug Rauch, and Jet Blue's David Neeleman. We get their advice for success in life, business and other fields.

Capt. Dee Mewbourne, left, then-commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, and then-Rear Adm. Phil Davidson, commander of Carrier Strike Group 8, speak with and Gen. Stanley McChrystal, then-commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces Afghanistan, on the bridge of Dwight D. Eisenhower, June 17, 2010. McChrystal was on a battlefield circulation visit to the ship during Operation Enduring Freedom. (PO1 Mark O'Donald)

For example, here's how Gen. Stanley McChrystal puts people first through systemic flattening of the organization and empowerment beyond delegation:

"You might be surprised to learn that for many years, the key military leader in charge of America's war on terror was a strong proponent of open, distributed leadership. When now-retired four-star general Stanley McChrystal took the leadership of the Joint Special Operations Command in 2003, he quickly saw that the military's traditional, hierarchical, highly centralized command-and-control model would fail to defeat al-Qaeda in Iraq. The only way to beat al-Qaeda would be to transform the military into an open, collaborative network that moved power out from the center to enable people in the field to engage in autonomous decision making. So in the midst of the war, McChrystal dismantled existing decision-making structures and implemented a faster, flatter, and more agile organizational model. In McChrystal's 'team of teams' approach, transparent communication of information became more important because each person was empowered to be a potential decision maker. It wasn't delegation –– it was truly equally distributed decision making that required soldiers to open up and trust their colleagues to make the right decision at the right time. No wonder high-ranking military personnel like McChrystal identify 'soft' values –– like humility, empathy, openness, and compassion –– as critical predictors of soldiers' success."

That's the heart of the advice in this book: be good, choose well, and choose "good."

Tjan creates a pyramid, charts and lists to illustrate and inspire. He publishes Benjamin Franklin's thirteen virtues. At least one –– #4 Resolution –– is a "found haiku:"

Resolve to perform

what you ought; perform without

fail what you resolve

Tjan resolves that "These three cornerstone qualities of goodness are our anchors in the pursuit of goodness:" truth, compassion, fulfillment and gratitude.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, of Illinois, is interviewed by Command Master Chief David Twiford, command master chief of Recruit Training Command (RTC), Great Lakes, Aug. 12, 2019, about her experiences and philosophy. (Mass Communication Specialist Second Class Camilo Fernan)

The emphasis on character is at the heart of Senator Tammy Duckworth's philosophy and "the values we hold dear — respect, compassion, and tolerance." Duckworth served in Iraq as an Army National Guard helicopter pilot. She lost both legs and partial use of her right arm in a rocket-propelled grenade attack. She served as U.S. Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs before her election to the Senate. At the VA she became known for her caring outreach to veterans.

While reading Tjan's book I thought of her and other strong-yet-compassionate leaders –– well-read leaders –– who focused on people of character in order to meet the mission.

General James Mattis, former Secretary of Defense, said, "Reading is an honor and a gift from a warrior or historian who—a decade or a thousand decades ago—set aside time to write." His list of recommended books include titles by Max Boot, Barbara Tuchman, Ulysses S. Grant, Nelson Mandella, George P. Shulz, and Will and Ariel Durant, among others.

Like General James Mattis, Tjan knows good, thoughtful leaders are readers. "Read broadly, read deeply," Than advises. "The more you read, the better you think."

One of the many books he highlights is "Adrift," a memoir by Steven Callahan, who was a naval architect and lifelong seaman.

"The book, originally published in 1986, chronicles Callahan's experience alone and lost at sea for seventy-six days, clinging to a survival raft, and remains among the most amazing stories of grit, resilience, acceptance, and, ultimately, triumph that I've ever read," Tjan says.

Callahan battled sharks, changing weather conditions, and hunger. Because he was well-read on survival at sea he knew how to "create his own ecosystem," distilling water, spearing fish, and fighting off sickness. All the while, he dealt with ever-changing situations with agility, stoicism, and a positive resilience.

Tjan's own book is filled with memorable examples of principled core values, critical thinking, and inspiring servant leadership.

As with a lot of business books, sometimes the advice comes across as simplistic common sense, but the optimism and hopefulness here are timely and appreciated in this summer of 2020: people first, mission always.

Beware the Slime

Review by Bill Doughty––

Slimy charlatans can rise to power and start mass movements with frustrated followers, crazed fanatics and true believers.

In "The True Believer" (Harper & Row, 1951) gifted thinker and writer Eric Hoffer describes how mass movements –– including authoritarianism and totalitarianism –– can get started and perpetuated. Hoffer worked on docks as a longshoreman, but he read and studied voraciously to become a respected American philosopher and educator.

Eric Hoffer, longshoreman philosopher

An epigraph from the Bible opens "The True Believer" with words from Genesis 11: "And slime had they for mortar." Hoffer examines the slime using the magnifying glasses of history and psychiatry.

Written just six years after World War II, Hoffer's book analyzes how fanaticism can take root and flourish. Examples come from Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Marxist Communism as well as other movements that prey on frustrated and disenfranchised people who feel victimized and in need of something to believe in. 

Hoffer explains his use of the word "frustrated" to mean those who feel their lives are spoiled and wasted –– in need of another group to hate, blame and attack.

"That the relation between grievance and hatred is not simple and direct is also seen from the fact that the released hatred is not always directed against those who wronged us. Often, when we are wronged by one person, we turn our hatred on a wholly unrelated person or group. Russians, bullied by Stalin’s secret police, are easily inflamed against 'capitalist warmongers;' Germans, aggrieved by the Versailles treaty, avenged themselves by exterminating Jews; Zulus, oppressed by Boers, butcher Hindus; white trash, exploited by Dixiecrats, lynch Blacks [see my recent post on the Wilmington coup of 1898, the year of Hoffer's birth, coincidentally]. Self-contempt produces in man 'the most unjust and criminal passions imaginable, for he conceives a mortal hatred against that truth which blames him and convinces him of his faults.'" [quoting Blaise Pascal]

According to the editors of Time, who republished Hoffer's book in 1963, "The True Believer" was on President Eisenhower's reading list, and Ike heartily recommended it to others. Hoffer was born in 1898 and died a few months after being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Reagan.

The book examines not only the rise of charlatans and fanatics but also the acquiescence of a passive public that can allow that rise to occur. Hoffer contends that "true believer" mass movements are not likely to originate in free and healthy democracies. Also fanatics are not apt to come from within an ordered and structured military, although one could argue that's exactly what happened in Japan at the turn of the 20th century and through World War II.

True believers are blind to reason. Faith in their cause requires a rejection of verifiable data and facts. True faith, he says, is suspension of belief in reality –– not faith to move mountains but unyielding belief there are no mountains even when there are.

"A peculiar side of credulity is that it is often joined with a proneness to imposture," Hoffer writes. "The association of believing and lying is not characteristic solely of children. The inability or unwillingness to see things as they are promotes both gullibility and charlatanism." 

Fanatics trust their hearts, not their minds; they put their feelings over rational thinking. "They ask to be deceived," he writes in chapter 13. They can see symbols of the past as sacred and unchangeable. "Preoccupation with the past" stems from "a desire to demonstrate the legitimacy of the movement."

"The followers of a mass movement see themselves on the march with drums beating and colors flying. They are participators in a soul-stirring drama played to a vast audience—generations gone and generations yet to come."

True believers and fanatics will be "ready to die for a button, a flag, a word, an opinion, a myth," a ribbon and a greater purpose. 

And, if they are willing to die for a cause, they will be willing to kill for a cause. In the case of some mass movements, that means killing innocent civilians.

Hoffer writes, "Hitler dressed up 80 million Germans in costumes and made them perform in a grandiose, heroic and bloody opera." Hitler's henchman Rudolf Hess reportedly told new Nazi Party members in 1934, "Do not seek Adolf Hitler with your brains; all of you will find him with the strength of your hearts."

History shows that charlatan leaders of mass movements are often hateful, paranoid and amoral, if not immoral. Fanatic followers are easily swayed.

"The fanatic is perpetually incomplete and insecure. He cannot generate self-assurance out of his individual resources—out of his rejected self— but finds it only by clinging passionately to whatever support he happens to embrace. This passionate attachment is the essence of his blind devotion and religiosity, and he sees in it the source of all virtue and strength. Though his single-minded dedication is a holding on for dear life, he easily sees himself as the supporter and defender of the holy cause to which he clings. And he is ready to sacrifice his life to demonstrate to himself and others that such indeed is his role. He sacrifices his life to prove his worth. It goes without saying that the fanatic is convinced that the cause he holds onto is monolithic and eternal—a rock of ages. Still, his sense of security is derived from his passionate attachment and not from the excellence of his cause. The fanatic is not really a stickler to principle. He embraces a cause not primarily because of its justness and holiness but because of his desperate need for something to hold on to. Often, indeed, it is his need for passionate attachment which turns every cause he embraces into a holy cause. The fanatic cannot be weaned away from his cause by an appeal to his reason or moral sense. He fears compromise and cannot be persuaded to qualify the certitude and righteousness of his holy cause. But he finds no difficulty in swinging suddenly and wildly from one holy cause to another. He cannot be convinced but only converted. His passionate attachment is more vital than the quality of the cause to which he is attached."

Hoffer at San Francisco Public Library

Some may take offense at Hoffer's sanctimonious and righteous tone and his sweeping generalizations about the psychology of leaders and mobs. He says devout atheists are religious people, for example, and the swastika and hammer-and-sickle are religious symbols like the cross. He writes, "It is easier for a fanatic Communist to be converted to fascism, chauvinism or Catholicism than to become a sober liberal."

The opposite of a fanatic, Hoffer contends, is a "gentle cynic." Justice, open-mindedness and unity –– not retaliation –– can counter hate and division. Sounding like Sun-Tzu, he writes: "To wrong those we hate is to add fuel to our hatred. Conversely, to treat an enemy with magnanimity is to blunt our hatred for him."

Hoffer gives examples of good and "practical men of action" –– leaders such as Lincoln, Gandhi and Churchill –– to counter fanatics. Moral integrity, he says, is not a monopoly of true believers; freedom is worth fighting for and defending. Authoritarian mass movements rely on the passivity of a weak electorate or complacency of a lazy citizenry. 

"The first glimpse of the face of anarchy frightens them out of their wits. Not so the fanatic. Chaos is his element ... He shoves aside the frightened men of words, if they are still around, though he continues to extol their doctrines and mouth their slogans. He alone know that innermost cravings of the masses in action... Posterity is king; and woe to those, inside and outside the movement, who hug and hang on to the present."

Good leaders can create positive, creative movements with good, informed people. "The self-confidence of these rare leaders is derived from and blended with their faith in humanity," Hoffer writes, "for they know that no one can be honorable unless he honors mankind."

This is a recommended Navy Reads choice for those interested in defending the Constitution, preventing the rise of fascism/totalitarianism, and in developing good leadership. It's also a good companion to works by Hanna Arendt, Mary Wollstonecraft, Martin Niemöller, Bernard-Henri Lévy, and Madeleine Albright.

Unlike fake charlatans and fanatics, good and honorable leaders "are not tempted to use the slime of frustrated souls as mortar in the building of a new world."

Eric Hoffer, critical thinker and writer

'Wilmington ... Rise of White Supremacy'

Review by Bill Doughty

White supremacists –– men who considered themselves to be "victims" of history –– committed gross atrocities in Wilmington, NC, at the end of the 19th century. Through violence and intimidation, they prevented blacks from voting. Then, after a rigged election, red-shirted whites of the Democratic party went on a riot, killing as many as 60 black Americans, attacking members of the Fusionist part, setting fire to a black newspaper office, and banishing hundreds of blacks from their homes.

The details of the tragedy are captured in "Wilmington's Lie: The Murderous Coup of 1898 and the Rise of White Supremacy" by David Zucchino (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2020). And the terrible truth is that the Navy was tied directly and indirectly to the events.

White supremacists burned a black-run newspaper office and posed for photos before a murderous rampage in Wilmington, NC, in 1898.

"The naval commander, George L. Morton, ordered his men to prepare to deploy to North Fourth and Harnett Streets to assist in 'quelling the negro riots,' as he put it." (though Zucchino presents evidence that it was the whites, not blacks, who initiated the killing rampage.)

Morton sought and received permission from the county deputy sheriff and then informed Governor Russell by telegram of the order to deploy Naval Reserves into the streets. "The Naval Reserves now had authorization –– from a white Republican –– to secure the peace with every weapon at Morton's disposal, including the Hotchkiss rapid-fire gun delivered two days earlier."

"In response to commander Morton's telegram, Russell's adjutant general wired back: 'Your action ordering out naval reserves to preserve the peace is approved by the Governor, who directs that you place yourself under orders of Lieut. Col. Walker Taylor.' Between them, the infantry and the Naval Reserves were able to deploy 140 trained and armed white men. Russell's decision was pivotal: he gave a committed white supremacist unchecked authority to unleash state troops against black citizens –– the very men whose votes had put Russell in office."

A History of Institutionalized Racism

Confederate General Braxton Bragg

The election and riot came just a generation after the end of the Civil War. "The U.S. Navy had unleashed upon Fort Fisher the heaviest naval bombardment in history at the time. The fall of the fort in January 1865 had closed all access to the port of Wilmington, the Confederacy's last functioning seaport." Fort Fisher had been lost by the South's General Braxton Bragg (later to be the namesake of Fort Bragg).

"The closing week of the Civil War brought chaos and upheaval to Wilmington. In late February 1865, great fires rose up, belching oily black smoke across the city. Supplies of rosin, turpentine, and cotton bales were set alight –– not by invading Union troops, but by fleeing Confederates. General Braxton Bragg and his army had managed to move most of their matériel out of Wilmington to use during their retreat, but Bragg ordered the remaining supplies put to the torch to keep them from the enemy."

In 1898 Wilmington's industries still relied on naval stores: tar, pitch and other related products made from North Carolina's pine trees. Many of the dirty hard jobs involved dockside labor. Wilmington supported the Spanish-American effort, and celebrated the return of troops with a parade and display of the American schooner William M. Bird and British steamer Hawkhurst. Naval officers marched in the parade.

A key instigator of the election fraud and attacks on blacks was, amazingly, a future Secretary of the Navy selected by segregationist President Woodrow Wilson: Josephus Daniels. In the late 1800s Daniels –– who was an unapologetic white supremacist –– ran an influential newspaper that published incendiary editorials, outright lies, and offensive political cartoons (including the fear-mongering cartoon at the beginning of this review).

Daniels and other racists played on the feelings of victimization former Confederates felt after free blacks achieved the right to vote and came into power. 

Josephus Daniels as Secretary of the Navy (NHHC)

White power demonstrators used Navy guns to intimidate black voters. When some blacks tried to buy guns Josephus Daniels published an article about the attempt. He also praised voter suppression and intimidation. He warned of black suffrage, incompetent leadership, black rapists, and miscegenation in 1898 propaganda.

"More than a century before sophisticated fake news attacks targeted social media websites, Daniels's manipulation of white readers through phony or misleading newspaper stories was perhaps the most daring and effective disinformation campaign of the era. It reached a climax that fall in Wilmington –– a special target for Daniels because of its majority black population. 'A reign of terror was on' in the city, he warned."

White militia and other gunmen burned down the office of the office of the town's black-owned newspaper. They fired guns into black homes and then confronted a group of blacks who came out to protest the violence. Some of the blacks were armed with old pistols and rifles. They were no match for the white supremacists.

"The whites ordered the blacks to disperse. They refused and cursed the white men again. It did not take long for the standoff to erupt in violence. Moments later, four white men unleashed a fusillade from a .44-caliber navy rifle, two 16-shot repeating rifles, and a double-barreled shotgun loaded with buckshot. Three black men toppled to the wood-slatted walkway. Two bled to death there, one on the walkway beneath the awning of Walker's grocery and the other after tumbling into the gutter nearby. They were identified as Charles Lindsay and William Mouzon. The third man crawled inside a nearby home and died on the floor. Other men ran from the corner in all directions, pursued by whites shooting wildly at their fleeing figures."

It was the start of a killing campaign that left dozens of blacks dead in streets and ditches, many shot in the back.

Red-Shirt, hatted militia intimidated black voters, closed black businesses and murdered dozens of blacks in Wilmington, N.C.

A Legacy Lasting Decades

Zucchino describes the long-lasting influence of the "murderous coup":

"The killings and coup in Wilmington inspired white supremacists across the South. No one had ever seen anything like it. Wilmington's whites had mounted a rare armed overthrow of a legally elected government. They had murdered black men with impunity. They had robbed black citizens of their right to vote and hold public office. They had forcibly removed elected officials from office, then banished them forever. They had driven hundreds of black citizens from their jobs and their homes. They had turned a black-majority city into a white citadel."

President McKinley refused to condemn the coup, and an investigation by officials went nowhere.

"Well before U.S. Attorney Bernard shut down his investigation in Raleigh, Josephus Daniels and Furnifold Simmons [a racist politician who would eventually become a U.S. senator] had concluded that the federal government had no interest in punishing election violence in North Carolina. They knew that no white man in the state would be prosecuted for killing blacks. No Red Shirt would face justice for threatening blacks or whipping them in their homes. No Democratic poll worker would be held accountable for stuffing ballot boxes. Murder, fraud, and voter intimidation had been effectively legalized, so long as the targets were black."

Zucchino outlines how white supremacists expanded their campaign of election fraud, including "two schemes to disenfranchise black voters: the poll tax and literacy test." They practiced gerrymandering and use of a grandfather clause, ostensibly to protect white "uneducated voters." The effects of depressed voting and a white power structure lasted for decades and kept Democrats in control "until the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s had driven Southern white conservatives into the segregationist states rights wing of the Republican Party."

Zucchino writes, "In 1972, North Carolina elected its first Republican U.S. senator in seventy-four years –– Jesse Helms, an ardent segregationist who once mailed postcards to black residents warning that they could be prosecuted for fraud if they tried to vote."

Lowering the Mississippi state flag in a transfer of authority ceremony, Cont. Op. Base Speicher, Iraq, March 10, 2010. (Spc. J. Zullig)

The coup and murders of Wilmington of 1898 occurred in the same timeframe that the Mississippi flag was installed (1894); Jim Crow segregation was instituted (1899); and hundreds of monuments, including statues, were erected to honor the Confederacy and promote white supremacy (late 1800s and early 1900s).

Confederate Navy Adm. Franklin Buchanan

Another white backlash came after the First World War in the wake of greater integration, especially within the military. As whites felt victimized in job and housing markets, despite their historical privileges, they installed more monuments, namesakes, and flags.

Buchanan Hall at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, named for Confederate States Adm. Franklin Buchanan, was given that name in 1976, two years after CNO Adm. Elmo "Bud" Zumwalt retired. Zumwalt brought revolutionary changes to the Navy in racial and gender equality.

This summer Defense Department officials said they are open to renaming Confederate-namesake facilities, but President Trump said he "won't even consider" authorizing changes to Confederate namesakes.

Josephus Daniels, a supporter of the Ku Klux Klan, served President Wilson as SECNAV from 1913 to 1921. Daniels oversaw the Navy through World War I and the 1918 influenza pandemic. Franklin D. Roosevelt, a future US president, served as Daniels's Assistant Secretary of the Navy; when Roosevelt became president he appointed Daniels as ambassador to Mexico.

In 2006, Daniels's former newspaper, "News and Observer," published a powerful mea culpa and exposé of the white supremacists' crimes. Author Zucchino spoke with Daniels's grandson as well as other family members of key figures involved in the Wilmington coup. The results of those interviews are enlightening and relevant in 2020.

Two weeks ago Daniels's great grandson, Josephus Daniels III, had the statue of his original namesake removed from display in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Zucchino's research for "Wilmington's Lie" includes the works of numerous historians and academics as well as original-source contemporaneous newspapers, letters, memoirs, reports, documents and even sermons. It's interesting to see the complicity of Christian church leaders before, during and after the attack. Several white pastors actually took up weapons against black people. Surprisingly, black pastors preached complacency, saying the whites' attack was understandable as the "wrath of God."

In 2008 the people of Wilmington installed a monument to commemorate the tragedy of 1898 and memorialize the murders of the black citizens. An attempt to create a monument in Wilmington ten years earlier during the centennial year was unsuccessful and an "incendiary topic," according to Zucchino: "One white man vowed to tear down any monument to the dead."

And Now ... Michael Jordan

Sixty five years after the the events of 1898 Michael Jordan was born (1963). When he was a toddler he and his family moved to Wilmington, where he attended elementary school and high school. In 1981, as a freshman at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Jordan helped lead the Tar Heels basketball team (named after a naval store) to national championship in 1998; one hundred years after the coup.

Then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey meets Michael Jordan April 17, 2014.. (D. Myles Cullen, DOD)

The timeline between horrors of 1898 and the rise of Michael Jordan (bookended by Martin Luther King, Jr. and President Barack Obama) is similar to a timeline between Josephus Daniels (bookended by abolitionist SECNAV Gideon Welles and progressive CNOs like Adm. Zumwalt and Adm. Mike Mullen –– as well as SECNAV Ray Mabus). These timelines reveal not only the great successes of civil rights, but also the relative nearness-in-time of atrocities, prejudices and failures of justice.

An understanding of how much –– and how little –– time has passed may help us empathize with others and evaluate our progress toward justice as symbols of the Confederacy are rejected, including the St. Andrew's cross "stars-and-bars" flag, emphatically banned by Navy and Marine Corps leaders.

But there's much more progress needed: Last week the police department of Wilmington, NC, fired three veteran police officers after a lengthy investigation into their expressed threats regarding black citizens and officials. One of the police officers, Michael Kevin Piner, said he would buy an AR-15 military-style rifle to be ready for a "civil war" against black people to “wipe ‘em off the f***ing map. That’ll put ‘em back about four or five generations.” According to investigators, Piner used the the n-word and said, "we are just gonna go out and start slaughtering them" and "God I can't wait."

One wonders: Are past and recent successes and failures ironically creating more "victims" –– feelings of victimization that give justification for violence? Victimization-justification has happened time and again throughout history: Shia vs. Sunni Muslims, Christian Crusaders, Nazi Germany, former Soviet Union Russia, Communist Party of China, and North Korea vs. the free world.

With enough education, including the compelling history presented by Zucchino in "Wilmington's Lie," perhaps we can find humility; engender respect; and counter hate, spite, and any violence committed in the name of misplaced beliefs or outright lies. It starts with core values of honor, courage and commitment.

TBI and PTSD: Not Just Headaches

(USMC Photo by Tyler L. Main)

Review by Bill Doughty–

In "Military Mental Health Care: A Guide for Service Members, Veterans, Families, and Community" (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 2013), authors Cheryl Lawhorne-Scott and Don Philpott offer no-nonsense, clear-eyed information as well as advice and resources.

This book tackles serious issues, both physical and mental, beginning with the first chapter: "Traumatic Brain Injury." Starting on page one: "Blasts are a leading cause of TBI for active duty military personnel in war zones."

"One of the most common observations reported by families of service members originally not diagnosed with mTBI (concussion) is that upon return from deployment, they 'have changed.' Classic neurological and cognitive symptoms of mTBI that should be recognized and discussed with medical professionals include: reduced reaction time, decision-making difficulties, decreased memory and forgetfulness, attention and concentration difficulties, ... personality changes, impulsiveness, anger, sadness, depression..."

Art created by a service member recovering from PTSD, from the Southwestern University art gallery.

The authors offer the full "who, what, when, where and why" about TBI and mTBI and also the "how": How it develops, how it manifests and how to deal with it, including any anxiety, panic, flashbacks, rage, sleep interruption and difficulty concentrating; also, how it is treated.

Chapters include various stress-related mental health issues, sexual trauma and hazing, and suicide and homelessness. Chapter 15, "Resilience," and Chapter 16, "Health and Wellness" offer holistic help for individuals and families, with practical tips to get and remain healthy and fit. Several pages are dedicated to influenza and vaccinations.

BASETRACK Live is a two-person, multimedia documentary that tells the story of Marine Cpl. AJ Czubai’s 2010 deployment with the 1st Battalion, 8th Marines, to Afghanistan’s Helmand Province. The story centers on Czubai and his wife, Melissa, as they both try to readjust and cope to post-deployment challenges, including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), marriage difficulties, alcohol abuse and suicide. Serving as a backdrop, but integral to the story, is journalistic footage and interviews with other members of his unit, as well as with Family members. Photographs of the Marines and the Afghanistan people are also projected on stage accompanied by a haunting, but electrify musical score. The production has toured in 40 cities across the United States since its 2014 debut. (Photo by Gloria Montgomery)

Lawhorne-Scott and Philpott include special mention of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and recognizing/confronting stigma in order to get help:

"Mental health problems are not a sign of weakness. The reality is that injuries, including psychological injuries, affect the strong and brave just like everyone else. Some of the most successful officers and enlisted personnel have experienced these problems. But stigma about mental health issues can be a huge barrier for people who need help. Finding the solution to your problem is a sign of strength and maturity. Getting assistance from others is sometimes the only way to solve something. For example, if you cannot scale a wall on you own and need comrades to do so, you use them! Knowing when and how to get help is actually part of military training."

At the end of each chapter and at the back of the book, they offer reputable online resources for more information. They acknowledge especially VA and DOD resources. The VA offers a bundle of resources through a PTSD website.

"Military Mental Health Care" is an excellent Navy Reads selection for June –– PTSD Month.

The authors intend for their book to fit in with each service branch's Total Force Fitness concept of health, resilience and human performance. "TFF is not a 'How To' manual," they write in the foreword, "but rather a user-friendly, equal opportunity framework to building a behavior, discipline and level of fitness that sustains a lifestyle of resiliency."

TBI and PTSD can be more than just headaches, and there is help for survivors.

Junge on Leadership II – CAPT Crozier?

By Bill Doughty–

Crozier, then-CO of USS Blue Ridge at a candlelight service in 2018.

In early April we posted a review of Michael Junge's "Crimes of Command," a book that analyzes the U.S. Navy's history of responsibility, accountability, culpability, punishment and forgiveness. We followed up that review with an interview with the author, incorporating initial news of the firing of CAPT Brett Crozier, CO of USS Theodore Roosevelt.

Today (Friday night) the Navy announced the results of a follow-on investigation of how Crozier and other leaders acted to get TR sailors to safety. In Orwellian reasoning, the investigation concludes: “(Crozier) should have been focused on doing everything he could to slow transmission of COVID-19 by moving Sailors ashore.”

The firing of CAPT Crozier, subsequent mishandling by then-acting SECNAV Modly, heavy-handed commentary by POTUS, and today's announcement blaming Crozier presents a case study in leadership and decision-making. CAPT Crozier's case dovetails with some of Professor Junge's insights.

We return for another interview with CAPT Junge. What are his thoughts about Crozier and Modly, undue command influence by the commander in chief, civilian control of the military, and what it means to be a good leader.

I am including photos of CAPT Crozier – including some prior to his position as CO of USS Theodore Roosevelt when he was executive officer of USS Ronald Reagan and then-CO of USS Blue Ridge, flagship of U.S. 7th Fleet.

Crozier flies the Retention Excellence Award (REA) for  2017

BD: What does the CNO's conclusion about CAPT Crozier say, in context of "Crimes of Command" –– responsibility, accountability, culpability? What are your thoughts about the final outcome of the investigation?

MJ: Initial reporting on this was...awful.  CNN reported “in a major reversal” even though the Navy never officially made changes to the actions taken in early April. What is interesting is placing responsibility with Admiral Baker but (reportedly) leaving out the staffs and other shore commanders.

The very fact that there were rumors of CNO Gilday recommending Crozier’s reinstatement go a long way to recognizing that sometimes senior people err when removing a commander, and even if the removal wasn’t in error that sometimes things can change in the operating environment which allow senior commanders to reconsider decisions.

Other than that, I’m concerned that we once again saw a single office investigation conducted via phone and email instead of a board of inquiry conducted in theater. The Navy conducted multiple boards during World War II yet we haven’t seen one within the Navy in the last two decades. I’m working on an opinion piece that will flesh this commentary out some more.

BD: You've said 'ethics' implies "a level of autonomy that requires decision-making, while 'rules' do not." Was Crozier showing the essence of ethical leadership? From what we know, could he have done things differently?

MJ: I believe Captain Crozier showed ethical leadership. He made a moral judgement, he articulated why he made that judgement and sent that argument and conclusion up the chain of command.

Could he have done things differently? Of course, that is always an option. But, could he have done things differently and still gotten the desired and necessary result for his crew? I think that is unlikely. Looking at the responses to shipboard cases after Crozier’s letter he was prescient in his recommendations.

Crozier, then-CO of USS Blue Ridge, observes as the ship departs from dry dock, Jan. 21, 2018. (MC3 Patrick Semales)

BD: What were among Acting SECNAV Modly's mistakes and failures as a leader in handling the crisis?

MJ: Modly did exactly what he accused Crozier of – he was emotional, took the email’s leak as a personal betrayal, and allowed the complexity of his challenge with the COVID breakout on the ship to overwhelm his ability to act professionally, when acting professionally was what was needed most. He compounded this error with the incomprehensible flight to Guam and speech to the crew.

What a leader should have done was not take any of the actions by captain and crew as a personal affront. A leader should have stepped back, thought of what was right for the institution and separate that feeling from personal concerns or fears of appearance or senior judgement of a decision or action.

Capt. Brett E. Crozier, then-commanding officer of the U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19), shows then-Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer and his wife, Polly Spencer, the bridge during a tour of the ship, July 12, 2018. Spencer met with leadership and spoke with the crew. Blue Ridge and her crew have now entered a final upkeep and training phase in preparation to become fully mission capable for operations. (MC2 Jordan KirkJohnson)

BD: What does the Crozier/TR incident say about Navy culture? Is there a possibility that it will have a chilling effect on bold leadership?

MJ: I think it will definitely have a chilling effect on leadership in general, not just bold leadership. In and of itself, these actions wouldn’t be much. When combined with two oft-repeated statements in the wake of the 2017 collisions and subsequent reports the signal – intended or not – is clear “do your job and don’t ask or question.”

Capt. Brett Crozier, then-executive officer of the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), visits the ship’s barbershop and gets a haircut April 30, 2015 from Ship’s Serviceman Seaman Apprentice Hailey Carlisle. Reagan was underway conducting carrier qualifications. (MC3 Timothy Schumaker)

CO CAPT Crozier washes crew's dishes aboard TR for Thanksgiving.

BD: Does undue influence at the highest levels – including the CINC – hurt the Navy's culture? We've seen several instances such as the overturning of Navy SEAL Eddie Gallagher's conviction and subsequent ousting of SECNAV Richard Spencer. What are your thoughts on how this affects Navy culture?

MJ: Undue influence is only a problem when the subordinate leader allows that influence to affect judgment or action. If the first thought is “what will my boss think” then there is a problem, but it’s not the senior’s problem. But, the senior created the problem and must act proactively to solve it, if the senior desires to. Sometimes senior influence is necessary to right a wrong – sometimes different people have different ideas of what right or wrong is.

There is a great article called “Lawful Command Influence” that speaks to the “appropriate actions commanders or staff members can take within the military justice process to ensure good order and discipline is maintained within the ranks.” And this is not a new issue for any military service or government – it just is.

As different people and generations and legal regimes change, as norms alter, we have to relearn what is proper, right, and correct within the law. But, in general the right and proper thing hasn’t changed much in the past century. The biggest changes in legal action are around race, gender, and sexuality – but what was right and wrong really isn’t different.

Capt. Brett Crozier, center, then-executive officer of USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), and retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. Raymond Swalley, World War II veteran, shake hands in the ship’s hangar bay during a ship tour. Swalley served as a pilot aboard USS Bunker Hill (CV-17) during WWII. (MC3 McFarlane)

Meeting Commander United States Forces Korea, Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, 2018.

BD: How tenuous is civilian control of the military? Why is this important in a free democracy? How can it be made stronger?

MJ: Civilian control is imperative in a democracy or any free government and I do not think it is at all tenuous. The best way to make it stronger is to encourage open and vigorous discussion, even debate.

I’ve seen too many adherents to civ-mil relations dismiss another point of view because the individual making it is military and not academic, or academic and not military, or not-Huntington, or something other than actually addressing the core argument.

I think it is also important to keep the work of civ-mil relations limited to the linkage between the military and civilian government.  Many now conflate the concept of civ-mil to include civil society and it shouldn’t.

There should be a study of the military’s relationship to society (and vice versa) but it shouldn’t be civ-mil – that’s military to civilian government. Likewise, there should be study of society’s relationship towards government.

Harry Summers [author of "On Strategy: A Critical Analysis of the Vietnam War" (1982)"] misunderstood much of Clausewitz, but his redefined trinity has some value and the relationships between and among military, government, and society need discussion.*

Capt. Brett E. Crozier, then-commanding officer of the U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19), welcomes members of the Japan Self-Defense Force Joint Staff College for a tour aboard the ship, Sept. 18, 2018. (MC2 Adam K. Thomas)

BD: Similarly, why is it critical to keep an independent and strong Navy – as bold leaders fought for 70 years ago in the Revolt of the Admirals?

MJ: If we want to “play the away game” and be proactive about it, then we need a Navy. A strong Navy. It’s too late to start building a Navy after the first shots are fired.

The founders understood this and is why the Constitution requires that Congress must “maintain a Navy” and “raise an Army” though there is a lot of latitude there.

Another important leader who understood this was Franklin D. Roosevelt. He began a Navy buildup in 1934 - with further authorizations in 1938 and 1940 with a planned military capability for 1943, and that’s the path the USA followed in the war. 

Capt. Christopher Bolt, left, then-CO of USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), shakes hands with Capt. Brett Crozier, Ronald Reagan's then-Executive Officer, in celebration of his final arrested landing as command officer of Ronald Reagan, Sept. 15, 2015. (MC3 Ryan McFarlane)

Then-USS Reagan XO CAPT Crozier participates in general quarters drill in 2015. (MC3 N. Burke)

BD: You have expressed controversial opinions, including in your analysis and studies at the Naval War College, about how the Navy can continue to improve. How are you able to show such courage, and why is it important to provide unvarnished truth?

MJ: I’m not sure it’s courage so much as stubbornness and a little brashness. I have always believed in three things – intellectual honesty (truth), personal choice, and seeing the world the way it could be. I rarely press for a world as it “should” be, because that violates personal choice. I don’t like fooling people into doing something because that’s not intellectually honest.

As a Navy and a profession we are either strong, confident, and honest enough to choose telling the truth – varnished or not – or we aren’t. (See Q5 for some linkage here)

If leaders aren't strong enough to speak “truth to power” then are they really leading? Or are they really just good and diligent followers? And, when someone asks an “uncomfortable question” or “speaks truth to power” leaders need to ask themselves – why is this question uncomfortable? Why is someone disagreeing with me? That’s the secret part of humility as a leader – being open to the idea that you don’t have all the answers, which means listening to and considering critics.

Capt. Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), addresses local news media at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, Jan. 17, 2020. The Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group was on a scheduled deployment to the Indo-Pacific. (MCSN Kaylianna Genier)

BD: Overall, it seems the Navy has done a remarkable job responding to the COVID-19 crisis, from informing the fleet and families, deploying USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort, providing Navy Medicine personnel, and dealing with deployments. How important is coronavirus testing of Sailors and Navy civilians to keeping readiness at the highest level?

MJ: I really try and stay out of the COVID discussions – we learn so much every day that what is said tomorrow is likely either wrong or out of context by tomorrow or the next week.  What we must do is remain vigilant, remain flexible, and clearly recognize that the world has changed and seek to capitalize on that change rather than an attempt at returning to the status quo ante.

BD: Thank you for a list of books and authors in our first interview. Expanding on that, what books do you recommend specifically on virtue, especially for Navy readers? As you said, "seeking virtue is a lifelong quest." Would you also share your recommended maritime books and authors?

MJ: 

Virtue:

"After Virtue," Alisdair Macintyre
"The Character Gap," Christian Miller
"Practical Wisdom," Barry Schwartz

Maritime Books:

Tom Clancy's "Hunt For Red October, Red Storm Rising"
David Poyer’s Dan Lenson Series
PT Deutermann's “Scorpion in the Sea” 
Herman Wouk: “The Caine Mutiny,” “Winds of War” and “War and Remembrance”

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Just the titles of Junge's recommendations – "After Virtue," "Practical Wisdom" and "The Character Gap" – resonate in this COVID era of fear, mistrust of science, and the erosion of rule of law, integrity and leadership norms.

A big thank you to CAPT Junge for sharing his time and insights with Navy Reads, an unofficial blog in support of reading, critical thinking and the Navy's Professional Reading Program. Also, thank you to the mass communication specialists who helped show CAPT Crozier at the bridge, deck plates and in key leadership positions. Crozier is a profile in courage.

U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) CO, CAPT Brett E. Crozier, speaks with Medal of Honor recipient Maj. Gen. (ret.) James E. Livingston during a Morale Welfare and Recreation tour aboard the ship, Aug. 17, 2018, in Yokosuka, Japan. Livingston was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during battle in the Vietnam War and spent time aboard Blue Ridge after the emergency evacuation of Saigon in 1975. (MC2 Adam K. Thomas)

* Harry G. Summers was interviewed at the Institute of International Studies, UC Berkeley, in 1996 and responded to point of view of the founders' intent of the military to be controlled by the people and their representatives, acknowledging that it was "implicit in their design for our government." Summers said, "Yes, and explicit as well in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution, which makes it very clear that the American military is a creature of the Congress, not of the executive branch. The Congress has absolute power over its very existence. Clausewitz laid it out in the early nineteenth century when he differentiated between eighteenth-century war – which was a matter for kings and presidents and princes, and the people were just observers – and nineteenth-century war as a matter of what he called "the remarkable trinity of the people, the government, and the army." That observation, a very profound observation that he drew out of the French Revolution, had been drawn almost fifty years earlier in the American Revolution and incorporated into our Constitution. We are a trinitarian military in the true sense of the word – which has enormous ramifications for the commitment of U.S. military power and for U.S. military policy."

Capt. Brett Crozier, left, commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), receives the national ensign from Personnel Specialist 1st Class Susan Figueroa, from Bronx, N.Y., during a burial at sea Jan. 20, 2020. The Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group was on a scheduled deployment in the Indo-Pacific. (MCSN Dylan Lavin)