inequalities within the African 

American community. 

The 2023 Department of 

Defense Black History Month 

poster depicts (from left) 

Joseph McNeil, Franklin 

McCain, Ezell A. Blair, Jr., 

and David Richmond, on the 

second day of a peaceful 

sit-down protest in North 

Carolina. The Greensboro SitIns were the first prominent 

non-violent sit-in protests of 

the civil rights movement. 

and culture by black 

citizens.” In 1976, 

ASALH expanded the 

commemoration of 

Black History Week 

to Black History 

Month, also known as 

African American 

History Month. In the 

same year, President 

Ford issued a 

Message on the 

Observance of Black 

History Month. In 

1986, Congress 

passed Public Law 

99-244, which 

designated February 

1986 as “National 

Black (Afro-American) 

History Month.” In the 

following years, presidents 

continued to issue messages 

honoring Black History 

Month. 

The Defense Equal 

Opportunity Management 

Institute announced that this 

year’s theme for Black 

History Month is “Inspiring 

Change.” The theme 

epitomizes the contributions 

of African Americans to 

challenging racial 

Each year, Americans 

observe Black History 

Month in February, by 

celebrating the 

contributions and 

achievements that African 

Americans have made 

throughout U.S. history. 

Black History Month’s 

origins began in 1915, 

when historian and author 

Dr. Carter G. Woodson 

founded the Association 

for the Study of Negro Life 

and History, which is now 

known as the Association 

for the Study of African 

American Life and History 

(ASALH). Through this 

organization, Dr. Woodson 

initiated the first Negro 

History Week in February 

1926. He selected the 

week in February that 

included the birthdays of 

Abraham Lincoln and 

Frederick Douglass. 

In 1975, President Ford 

issued a Message on the 

Observance of Black 

History Week, urging all 

Americans to “recognize 

the important contribution 

made to our nation’s life 

Black History Month Observance 

Inside this issue: 

Employee Spotlight: Da’Laine 

Simpson 

2 

The Greensboro Sit-Ins 3 

Top 10 Black Leaders Who are 

Shaping America 

4 

Resources 5 

EEO Contact Information 5 

Observances 6 

EEO Mission 6 

February 2023 

Defense Logistics 

Agency Distribution 

EEO 

BLACK HISTORY MONTH 

Prominent African Americans 

Throughout History 

Maya Angelou (1928-2014): was 

an influential poet activist who 

was best known for her unique 

and pioneering autobiographical 

writing style. 

Jackie Robinson (1919-1972): 

was the first African American to 

play in Major League Baseball in 

the modern era. 

Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992): 

was a gay rights activist and selfidentified drag queen. Johnson 

was also one of the prominent 

figures in the Stonewall uprising of 

1969. 

Jane Bolin (1908-2007): was the 

first African American woman to 

graduate from Yale Law School 

and the first to join the New York 

City Bar Association. She also 

became the first black woman to 

serve as a judge in the United 

States.

The official 2023 Department of Defense 

Black History Month poster. 
Page 2 Black History Month 

Employee Spotlight: Da’Laine Simpson 

In honor of Black 

History Month, Defense 

Logistics Agency 

Distribution spotlights 

Da’Laine Simpson, a 

Distribution Process 

Worker at DLA 

Distribution 

Susquehanna, 

Pennsylvania. 

Simpson has worked at 

DLA Distribution 

Susquehanna since 

2008. While working at 

DDSP, he has become 

the President of AFGE 

Local 2004 and started 

the non-profit 

organization, Bro2Go. 

“In 2017, like Martin 

Luther King Jr., I too, 

had a dream,” Simpson 

said. “I started a 

non-profit organization 

called Bro2Go, which 

helps formerly 

incarcerated adults and 

at-risk youth. We offer 

one-on-one mentoring 

and make sure they 

have all the essential 

tools and life skills that 

they will need to 

succeed. We currently 

serve Dauphin, York, 

and Cumberland 

counties in Pennsylvania 

and are looking to 

further expand within 

the state and other 

cities in the U.S.” 

Simpson believes that it 

is extremely important 

to recognize Black 

History Month because 

it is a time to reflect 

and recognize the 

important achievements 

African American 

leaders have made 

throughout history. 

“Black History Month is 

a time to reflect and 

remember the great 

African American 

leaders of yesteryear. 

Not just leaders from 

our past, but the ones 

that are here today as 

well. It is important that 

DLA recognizes Black 

History Month to 

remind the nation of 

the important roles that 

we as Black people 

played in the success of 

this nation. People 

forget and it is easy to 

forget things that have 

taken place over time.” 

A common 

misconception about 

Black History that 

Simpson would like to 

correct is that Black 

History did not start 

when African 

Americans were 

brought into the 

Americas as slaves. 

“Our history did not just 

start when we were 

brought to this country 

against our will in 

captivity. We were 

MUCH, MUCH MORE 

than that! We were 

involved in the starting 

of the civilized nations 

of the ancient world. 

The Americas were not 

our beginning.” 

When asked what the 

hardest part of 

discussing race issues in 

America was for him, 

Simpson stated that, 

“The hardest part is 

that whenever you raise 

the issue of race today, 

people immediately 

perceive you as a 

racist. However, racism 

cannot be defeated if 

it’s not talked about. 

Change can only occur 

when conversations 

happen.” 

While it is important to 

Simpson for DLA to 

recognize Black History 

Month, it is also 

important to him that 

the DLA Distribution 

workforce remembers 

that there is still room 

for improvement. 

“The work for all of us, 

regardless of race is 

not done. The things 

that the Black 

Trailblazers and the 

Black Freedom Fighters 

stood for, many of 

those same problems 

and hurdles still exist 

today.” 

Da’Laine Simpson, DLA Distribution Susquehanna, Pennsylvania, employee 

and AFGE Local 2004 President, is spotlighted for Black History Month. 
The sit-ins continued until 

July 1960, when students 

began a far-reaching 

boycott of stores with 

segregated lunch counters. Sales at the boycotted stores dropped 

by a third, leading their 

owners to abandon segregation policies. 

The Greensboro sit-ins 

were a catalyst to the sitin movement that spread 

to other Southern cities. 

The sit-ins spread to 

other forms of public 

accommodation, including 

transport facilities, 

swimming pools, lunch 

counters, libraries, art 

galleries, parks, beaches 

and museums, primarily 

in the South. Then the 

Civil Rights Act of 1964 

was passed, which 

mandated desegregation 

in public 

accommodations. 

The Greensboro sit-ins 

were civil rights protests 

that started in 1960. It 

started when four young 

Black men staged the 

first sit-in in Greensboro. 

They were Ezell Blair Jr., 

David Richmond, Franklin 

McCain and Joseph 

McNeil, otherwise known 

as the Greensboro Four. 

On February 1, 1960, 

the Greensboro Four sat 

down at the lunch counter 

at Woolworth’s in 

downtown Greensboro, 

where the official policy 

was to refuse service to 

anyone but whites. 

Denied service, the men 

refused to give up their 

seats. Police arrived on 

the scene but were 

unable to take any 

action due to the lack 

of provocation. The 

Greensboro Four stayed 

until the store closed, 

then returned the next 

day with more students 

from local colleges. 

They were influenced by 

the nonviolent protest 

techniques practiced by 

Gandhi, as well as the 

Freedom Rides organized 

by the Congress for 

Racial Equality in 1947, in 

which interracial activists 

rode across the South in 

buses to test a recent 

Supreme Court decision 

banning segregation in 

interstate bus travel. 

Greensboro Sit-Ins 

Page 3 Black History Month 

“Somebody has to 

stand when other 

people are sitting. 

Somebody has to 

speak when other 

people are quiet.” 

~Bryan Stevenson 

A&T students endured verbal and physical abuse from other local 

residents during the Greensboro– sit-ins. 

Students protesting at the Greensboro sit-ins, 1960. 
Institute of Technology. 

Sydney Barber: Barber 

became the U.S. Naval 

Academy’s first female 

Black brigade 

commander. In the U.S. 

Naval Academy’s 

175-year history, there 

has never been a Black 

woman to serve as a 

brigade commander. 

Simone Biles: Biles is 

considered to be the 

greatest and most 

dominant gymnast of all 

time. She is tied with 

Shannon Miller for the 

most Olympic medals won 

by an American. 

Jessie Collins: Collins 

became the first Black 

executive producer of the 

Super Bowl halftime show 

in 2021. 

Mellody Hobson: Hobson 

became the first Black 

woman to be the chair of 

Starbucks board of 

directors in 2020. 

“My hope is that my name 

will remind future 

generations of students —

especially those who are 

Black and Brown and the 

“firsts” in their families —

that they too belong.” 

Amanda Gorman: 

Gorman became the 

youngest poet to read at 

a presidential 

inauguration. 

African Americans have 

played a crucial role in 

helping to advance 

America into what it is 

today. There are several 

hidden heroes that are 

rarely discussed and 

while their names might 

not sound familiar, these 

figures have shaped 

America. They have made 

history in their respective 

fields, and stand on the 

shoulders of the pioneers 

who came before them. 

Kamala Harris: Harris 

became the first Black, 

first South Asian American 

and first woman Vice 

President of the United 

States. She was also the 

first Black American to 

serve as California’s 

Attorney General from 

2011 to 2016. 

Beyonce: Beyonce is one 

of the world’s best selling 

recording artists of all 

time. She uses her 

platform to engage in 

conversations about 

gender, race and politics. 

Victor J. Glover, Jr.: 

Glover became the first 

Black astronaut to live 

and work at the 

International Space 

Station for an extended 

stay. 

“It is bittersweet, because 

I’ve had some amazing 

colleagues before me that 

really could have done it, 

and there are some 

amazing folks that will go 

behind me,” Glover said. 

“I wish it would have 

already been done, but I 

try not to draw too much 

attention to it.” 

Before becoming a NASA 

astronaut, Glover was a 

commander and test pilot 

in the U.S. Navy, where 

he flew 2,000 hours in 

over 40 aircraft and 24 

combat missions. 

Raphael Warnock: 

Warnock became 

Georgia’s first African 

American senator after he 

defeated incumbent 

Senator Kelly Loeffler in 

2021. He is also the first 

African American 

Democrat Senator from 

the South since the 

Reconstruction Era. 

Nicholas Johnson: 

Johnson became 

Princeton’s first African 

American valedictorian. 

“Being the first Black 

valedictorian in 

Princeton’s history feels 

incredibly empowering, in 

particular given the 

university’s historical 

beginnings and its ties to 

the institution of slavery,” 

Johnson stated. “The fact 

that today we have a 

Black valedictorian goes 

to how much work has 

been done, but also how 

much work still needs to 

be done.” 

Since graduating, Johnson 

is now earning a doctorate in operations research 

at the Massachusetts 

Top 10 Black Leaders Who are Shaping America 

Page 4 Black History Month 

Current Vice President 

Kamala Harris 

Midshipman 1st Class Sydney 

Barber is the U.S. Naval 

Academy's first African American 

female brigade commander. 

MC2 Nathan Burke/U.S. Naval 

Academy. 
https://www.defenseculture.mil/Human-Relations-Toolkit/Special-Observances/ 

https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/the-greensboro-sit-in 

https://commonslibrary.org/lessons-from-the-greensboro-student-sit-ins/ 

https://www.bignet.org/home 

23 Black leaders who are shaping history today (cnbc.com) 

11 Black American Heroes You Might Not Know About, But Should (today.com) 

Resources 

Page 5 

Defense Logistics Agency Distribution Equal Employment 

Opportunity Office

Complaints Team 

ddc.eeo@dla.mil 

JoAnn F. Schopman 

Supervisor, EEO Specialist 

Joann.Schopman@dla.mil 

Michael Brown 

EEO Specialist 

Michael.Brown2@dla.mil 

Thomas (Tommy) E. Mcintyre 

EEO Specialist 

Thomas.McIntyre@dla.mil 

Cynthia Allen 

EEO Specialist 

Cynthia.1.Allen@dla.mil 

Jerry Clements 

EEO Specialist 

Jerry.Clements@dla.mil 

Sander (Del) Sosatoledo 

EEO Specialist 

Sander.Sosatoledo@dla.mil 

Marcelo Figueroa 

EEO Specialist 

Marcelo.Figueroa@dla.mil 

AEP Team 

distribution.ra.requests@dla.mil 

Carrie Cash 

Supervisor, EEO Specialist 

Carrie.Cash@dla.mil 

Cristina Rivera 

EEO Specialist 

Cristina.1.Rivera@dla.mil 

Laura B. D’Arca 

EEO Specialist 

Laura.D’Arca@dla.mil 

Melinda Torres 

EEO Specialist 

Melinda.Torres@dla.mil 

Richard Trick 

EEO Specialist 

Richard.Trick@dla.mil 

Bridgette R. Vaughn 

EEO Specialist 

Bridgette.Vaughn@dla..mil 

Kylie J. Young 

EEO Assistant 

Kylie.J.Young@dla.mil 

Page 5 Black History Month 

Zachary Currier 

DLA Distribution EEO Manager 

zachary.m.currier@dla.mil 
Third Monday of January - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day 

February - African American/Black History Month 

March - Women’s History Month 

 

May - Holocaust Remembrance Day/Days of Remembrance 

May - Asian American/Pacific Islander Heritage Month 

June - Pride Month 

 26 August - Women’s Equality Day 

15 September to 15 October - National Hispanic Heritage Month 

October - National Disability Employment Awareness Month 

November - National American Indian Heritage Month 

Vision 

Ensure consistent programs of equality, diversity and inclusion for all employees that 

empower the workforce to achieve their full potential and unify the workforce to 

achieve the mission. 

Mission 

Create a collaborative culture where the empowerment of a diverse workforce bolsters 

individual and organizational growth. 

Assist individual and organizational resiliency through programs and initiatives that 

attract, recruit, develop and retain the best talent as a mission necessity. 

Respond to all EEO complaints with the utmost respect ensuring confidentiality, 

neutrality, and adherence to prescribed regulatory guidance. 

Enhance education and awareness training efforts to promote a workplace free of 

unlawful discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, physical 

or mental disability, or reprisal for personnel engaging in EEO protected activity. 

DLA Distribution 

Equal Employment Opportunity 

& Diversity Office 

430 Mifflin Avenue, 

Suite 2143 

New Cumberland, PA 

17070-5004 

Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity 

Observances 

Page 6 

The Nation's Combat 

Logistics Support Agency 

Page 6 Black History Month 

EEO Director 

Zachary Currier 

Designer and Writer 

Kylie Young