NECC Holds Secretary Of Defense Directed Stand Down to Address Extremism in the Ranks
16 March 2021
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va -- Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) held a stand down to address extremism in the ranks on March 15.
Rear Adm. Joseph DiGuardo led the stand down by reviewing the responsibilities of all Navy Sailors and civilians, reviewing impermissible behaviors, and reaffirming the oath of enlistment and the officer oath of enlistment for all service members at NECC.
“The intent of this is to explain to each other and explain to ourselves what extremism means,” said DiGuardo, “and to ensure we have an opportunity to discuss this in smaller groups and to understand respect each other’s opinions.”
On February 5, 2021, the Secretary of Defense directed unit commanders and supervisors at all levels to conduct a leadership “stand down” within 60 days to address the issues of extremist ideology.
Extremist ideologies, particularly those that undermine the oath servicemembers take to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, have no place within the Navy.
This effort is part of an ongoing discussion at NECC about inclusion and diversity within the Navy and the Expeditionary Combat Force.
After the oath of enlistment and oath of office was reaffirmed Sailors and civilians from NECC broke out into smaller groups for more open discussions.
The vast majority of the men and women in the Navy and those who serve the Department of the Navy as civilian employees perform their duties and responsibilities with integrity, and do not support racially and ethnically motivated violent extremists, including white supremacists, and other domestic terrorists such as anti-government violent extremists. However, recent events have shown that we must be ever vigilant in our efforts to identify and combat such ideology within the ranks and organizations.
NECC is responsible for organizing, manning, training, equipping, and sustaining the Navy Expeditionary Combat Force (NECF). NECF Sailors support an integrated U.S. Naval force and reinforce blue-water lethality while serving as members of Maritime Expeditionary Security Force, the Naval Construction Force, Explosive Ordnance Disposal, and Diving and Salvage Units; and as part of expeditionary units that provide unique intelligence and logistics capabilities.