Military

Gen. Charles Q. Brown takes over Air Force, makes history as first Black service branch chief

By Dan Lamothe
August 6, 2020 at 3:20 p.m. EDT

Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown Jr. became the new chief of staff of the Air Force on Thursday, making history as the first Black chief of a military service and acknowledging the significance to himself and others.

“This is a very historic day for our nation, and I do not take this moment lightly,” Brown said, speaking in a hangar at Joint Base Andrews. “Today is possible due to the perseverance of those who went before me, serving as an inspiration to me and so many others.”

Brown cited as examples the Tuskegee Airmen, an all-Black unit of fighter pilots in World War II; Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., who commanded them and went on to become a general; Brig. Gen. Charles McGee, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen; and Gen. Daniel “Chappie” James Jr., the first Black four-star general in U.S. military history.

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Thursday’s ceremony had a smaller crowd than customary as a new service chief takes over because of the coronavirus pandemic, but still included scores of guests and dignitaries. President Trump did not attend, but he and Vice President Pence swore Brown in separately in an Oval Office event Tuesday, during which the president called him a “great gentlemen” and a “great man.”

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Dan Lamothe
Dan Lamothe joined The Washington Post in 2014 to cover the U.S. military and the Pentagon. He has written about the Armed Forces for more than a decade, traveling extensively, embedding with each service and covering combat in Afghanistan numerous times. Follow https://twitter.com/@danlamothe