Biden's deputy defense sec says 'policies focused on the needs of non-binary service members' aligns with 'focus on readiness'

The Biden administration's second highest Pentagon official has outlined commitments to "non-binary" identified military members as well as to providing "unconscious bias" training. Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleene Hicks discussed these ideas as being key to national security for the United States.  

Hicks discussed the need for cultural change in the military at multiple pride events, with one being on June 5 most recently, per Fox News. During a DoD pride event with the Association of LGBTQI+ Service Members, Hicks touched on that needs of LGBTQ service members, and specifically mentioned "non-binary" service members in the military.  

"We've heard concerns about … policies focused on the needs of nonbinary service members. Please know our commitment is resolute, just as it has been over the past three-and-a-half years, to continue our progress in full alignment with our focus on readiness and our focus on the well-being of our people, on which our readiness depends," she stated at the event. The Pentagon later told the outlet that there are no policies for "non-binary" military personnel at the DoD.  

"Deputy Secretary Hicks spoke about the need for Americans to choose public service in order to sustain our all-volunteer force, and the need to ensure health, safety and trust within our military as a matter of readiness," a spokesperson for Hicks made in a statement to the outlet. "That would include listening to servicemember input on a wide variety of policies-not just the ones she highlighted on this occasion. She didn’t talk about, or imply, the importance of any particular policy in the context of national security." 

Hicks also spoke on the "erosion of trust" in different government institutions, she proposed that the federal government further focus on DEI initiatives in order to increase recruiting.  

Another video of Hicks at a 2022 pride event that was reviewed by the outlet revealed that she claimed, "warfighting success" was connected to awareness of our "unconscious bias." Hicks said at the time in 2022, "Recruiting, developing and retaining a highly skilled military and civilian workforce of diverse talent is essential to our warfighting success."  

She told Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin that DEI was a top priority for the Pentagon and added, "Secretary Austin and I are committed to holding leaders at all levels responsible for fostering climates of inclusion that support dialog, including for LGBTQ+ community. This is a core readiness issue." The Pentagon has previously demanded $114 million for different DEI initiatives. In this vein, other Biden administration agencies have also been pushing their own DEI initiatives.