Langley is one of just half a dozen Black Marine generals. USMC Flags May21 - Updated by U.S. These cookies collect information for analytics and to Failing which, the officer's first Senate confirmation date to lieutenant general should be substituted. But of the 42 most senior commanders in the military those with four-star ranks in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard only two are Black: Gen. Charles Q. But never in its history has the Marine Corps had anyone other than a white man in its most senior leadership posts. on the Internet. In all the services, simply making colonel/captain is a signifier of elite accomplishment. Lance Cpl. Increased number of officers in the Marine Corps that may be appointed above grade of major general from 15 to 17, of which 15, Increased number of deputy commandants attached to Headquarters Marine Corps from 6 to 7 (. There have been 69 four-star generals in the history of the United States Marine Corps. The Marines have long cultivated a reputation as the nations toughest fighting force, but it remains an institution where a handful of white men command 185,000 white, African-American, Hispanic and Asian men and women. The Few, the Proud, the White: The Marine Corps Balks at Promoting Generals of Color, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/31/us/politics/marines-race-general.html. This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and On May 5, 1969, President Richard Nixon signed the bill, and Lieutenant General Lewis William Walt was promoted to that rank on June 2, 1969, thus becoming the first Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps to attain four-star rank. 147/5/1,419. There are none as of 3 June 2021. But Colonel Henderson is a Black man with combat command experience in a service the Marines that has never, in its 245-year history, had a four-star officer who was not a white man. When he received command of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit in 2014, the prevailing wisdom in the Corps especially among African-Americans was that here, finally, was a Black Marine who was going to make it to the top. While promotion through captain is essentially automatic, fewer than 70 percent of Marine captains make major; fewer than sixty percent of majors make lieutenant colonel; and fewer than 40 percent of lieutenant colonels make full colonel. Those who do are said to constitute the Senate of the Corps. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising. Marines searching a bazaar for weapons in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, in 2008. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a sale of your data under the CCPA. This list may not reflect recent changes. To make it to four stars, a candidate needs combat postings in his background. Other exceptions exist for non-active duty or reserve appointments, as well as other circumstances. The rank of lieutenant general (or three-star general) is the second-highest rank in the Marine Corps, and the first to have a specified number of appointments set by statute. All Commandants since that date have been entitled by law to serve in the grade of general and, in accordance with the provisions of 10U.S.C.