ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS BOARD DATE: 24 September 2019 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20170006121 APPLICANT REQUESTS: that his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge) reflect his correct race as Black. APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * Birth Certificate * Driver’s License Maryland with photo of unknown male * Military Identification (ID) with photo of unknown male * United States Department of Veterans Affairs ID with photo of unknown male * DD Form 214 FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, United States Code (USC), section 1552 (b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states he would like his DD Form 214 to reflect his correct race since he is black not white. He would like it to be corrected. 3. The applicant provides: * Copy of his X-------- certificate of birth without race for the applicant. The “Color” of his parents (illegible) * Copy of his X-------- driver’s license with applicant’s name and date of birth and photo of a male * Copy of his Military ID with applicant’s name and a photo of a male * Copy of his Veterans Administration ID with applicant’s name and a photo of a male * Copy of his DD Form 214 which shows in item 7a (Race) as Caucasian 4. A review of the applicant’s service record shows the following: a. DD Form 214 shows the date inducted (Item 16) as 14 September 1961 into the Army of the United States (AUS). b. DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) dated September 1961 shows item 9 (Race) as NEG. c. Standard Form 89 (Report of Medical History) dated 28 July 1961 shows item 8 (Race) NEG. d. SF 88 (Report of Medical Examination) dated 21 August 1961 shows item 8 (Race) Negro. e. SF 89 item 8 dated 21 August 1961 reflects (Race) NEG. f. SF 89 dated 6 June 1963 reflects item 8 (Race) Cau. g. His DD From 214 ending period 27 August 1963 in item 7a (Race) shows CAU. He served 1 year, 11 months and 14 days. h. He was discharged from the United States Army Reserve 22 August 1967. His character of service was honorable. 5. The DD Form 214 is a summary of the Soldier's most recent period of continuous active duty. It provides a brief, clear-cut record of all current active, prior active, and prior inactive duty service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. The information entered thereon reflects the conditions as they existed at the time of separation. The ABCMR limits corrective action to documents that can be individually reviewed after a Soldier's separation, such as the DD Form 214. 6. The specific instructions for item 7a (Race) of the DD Form 214-enter “Race” enter "Caucasian," "Negroid," Mongolian," "Indian (American or Malayan)" from DA Form 20 or enlistment record, as appropriate. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found relief was warranted. Board members acknowledged that the Army was not consistent at the time when it came to race. Despite the inconsistency, there is at least one document in the service record (DA Form 20) to support the requested change; therefore, the Board recommended granting the requested relief. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 X :X :X: GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING : : : DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by amending the applicant’s DD Form 214 by removing from Item 7a “CAU” and replacing it with “BLK”. I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, USC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within three years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the three-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), paragraph 2-13, in effect at the time, prescribed the separation documents that must be prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active duty service or control of the Active Army. It established standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. The general instructions stated all available records would be used as a basis for preparation of the DD Form 214. 3. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), then in effect, establishes the standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. The regulation states the purpose of the separation document is to provide the individual with documentary evidence of his or her military service at the time of release from active duty, retirement, or discharge. It is important that information entered on the form be complete and accurate, and that it reflects the conditions as they existed at the time of separation. For item 7a enter "Caucasian," "Negroid," Mongolian," "Indian (American or Malayan)." This information will be taken from the DA Form 20 or enlistment record as appropriate. 4. On 30 October 1997, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published "Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity." These new standards motivated a change in the way the Department of Defense (DOD) reported demographic information on members of the armed services. Since 2003, when information on race has been collected, individuals have been asked to choose one or more of the following race categories • American Indian or Alaskan Native (AIAN) • Asian • Black or African American • Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander (NHPI) • White 5. Army Regulation 655-8 prescribes policy and procedural guidance relating to transition management. It consolidates the policies, principles of support, and standards of service regarding processing personnel for transition and explains separation document preparation, distribution, and correction. Paragraph 5-6 of this regulation provides detailed instructions for data required in each block of the DD Form 214. This paragraph does not include any instructions for entering race, as the DD Form 214 no longer includes a block for entering this information. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20170006121 4 1