Last month, I discussed Veteran Critical Theory as it relates to higher education and the implications of VCT on current and future research. VCT is, I feel, an important framework for conversations within higher education about how veterans can be centered within scholarly discourse on a range of topics. Critical theory is an important framework for many of us in the struggle to bring counternarratives to existing conceptualizations of identity. However, there is another emerging conversation within Veteran Studies that centers around the meaning of being a veteran. Emma Murray (2016) introduced the notion of veteranality, which centers veteran voices and lived experiences in scholarly discourse. She and Charles Warner (2022), who suggested other domains to Murray's conceptualization of veteranality, focused their analyses of veteranality on criminality, violence, and returning combat veterans. Warner suggested that scholarly discourse should consider veteranality as a dynamic social construction that can be analyzed through a critical lens. However, they fall short of analyzing the unique experiences of Black veterans and the relationship between racial trauma from moral injury with veteran identity.

The conceptualization of veteranality is still being formed. Currently, Murray and Warner have published journal articles about it within the context of anthropological analysis. Warner's focus has included analysis of returning British combat veterans facing difficult transitions and finding themselves within the criminal justice system. Warner's work has focused on reframing what veteran identity means outside of the traditional -- what he calls the North Atlantic -- framing which largely ties identity to the nation-state. For example, can one be a veteran when the nation-state they served or fought for no longer exists? In my dissertation, I argued millions of Americans regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or religion have sworn the same oath throughout the history of this nation, the experiences of these veterans are significantly influenced by their positionality. The diversity of these experiences is important to the conceptualization of veteran identity.

Murray and Warner's early conceptualization of veteranality informed my own analysis in which I introduce the notion of Black veteranality which analyzes the distinct experiences of Black veterans of the U.S. military. Black veteran experiences at the intersection of race and veteran identity are often distinctly different than the experiences of our white peers. Existing scholarship does not analyze the intersection of Blackness and veteran identity. Veteran identity is determined by individual positionality as it reacts to intersecting racial and cultural power structures. Black veterans navigate a white gaze during and after their military service that often questions the masculinity and even patriotism of Black veterans. The value of Black veteran narratives within the context of veteranality will not be realized until Black veterans tell their own stories and incorporate them within scholarly discourse.

I believe there is a clear case for my conceptualization of Black veteranality. In a 2020 report published by the U.S. Air Force Inspector General, race was identified as a "barrier" and "challenge" that "others do not face." The report goes on to conclude, "While the presence of a disparity alone is not evidence of racism, sexism, discrimination, or disparate treatment, it presents a concern that requires more in-depth analysis and corrective action. The data identified in this review shows race, ethnicity, and gender are correlating factors, however, they do not indicate causality, and the review does not address why the disparities exist. This report's primary focus was on identifying areas of disparity for further analysis." (U.S. Air Force Inspector General Report, 2020). A 2022 survey by Syracuse University revealed 45% of Black veterans believed their racial/ethnic identity hurt their ability to advance in their careers (Syracuse University, 2022). And a 2023 Government Accountability Office (GAO) audit of twenty years of Veterans Administration adjudication of veteran claims revealed Black veterans experienced significant racial disparities regarding access to healthcare, treatment for homelessness, and experienced more joblessness (GAO, 2023).

Veteranality -- the subjective and objective conceptualizations of veteran identity -- is an important topic given how positionality informs veteran narratives. For me, this discussion is deeply personal because my identity and my experiences as a veteran, my experiences as a graduate student and PhD candidate, and my experiences as a Black man are all part of how I have navigated my universe. That I am the son of a veteran also contributes to the nature of my individual and group identities. Marginalization is being considered part of something while also not being fully part of that same thing. I conceive Black veteranality not as a limiting framework that only provides a lens for seeing what is lacking but to also help theorize the existence of patriotic traditions of service within the Black community that are often overlooked. More than being about historical data points regarding famous all-Black military units or the brave contributions of individuals, the conceptualization of Black veteranality provides a way to understand the fertile ground from which those individuals and groups of individuals were molded and influenced.

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Research on Student Veterans Working as a Veteran in HigherEd Workplace Inclusion

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