67th Expeditionary Signal Battalion

The 67th Signal Battalion is an expeditionary signal battalion of the United States Army, part of the 35th Signal Brigade.

67th Expeditionary Signal Battalion
Distinctive Unit Insignia
Active	1942–1946 1967–present
Country	United States of America
Branch	Regular Army
Type	Signal
Size	Battalion
Part of	35th Signal Brigade
Motto(s)	"The Lightning Force" "Voice of Combat"
Commanders
Current commander	Kevin J. Weber
Command Sergeant Major	Daniel P. Costello

History

The 67th's activation took place May 1, 1943 in Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi 10 days ahead of its 1st birthday.[1] The battalion relocated to the Louisiana Maneuver Area in February 1944 to augment the 97th Infantry Division during a three-month field exercise that spring. They would subsequently receive orders for the European Theater October 26, 1944; the battalion performed communications duties East and West of the Rhine River on behalf of the 82nd, 101st, and 17th Airborne divisions as well as the 94th Infantry Division. As the Rhineland Campaign drew to a close, the battalion seemed poised to return home. However, orders moving their operations from Germany to the Philippines in August 1945 were published and they supported XIV Corps in Luzon. The battalion would remain in the Philippines until its deactivation in April 1946.[2]

The 67th ESB was reactivated April 25, 1967 at Fort Riley where it would furnish support to ROTC cadets undergoing training there as well as to the VII Corps during REFORGER exercises and general post operations. The 67th continued in its capacity as a training outfit with the relocation of the battalion to Fort Gordon, where it remains, in December 1971. It supported the U.S. Army Signal Center until autumn of 1987 with the arrival of the newly vetted Digital Group Multiplex and TRITAC communications utilities. From January 1989 to September of the following year, the battalion would be indispensable in bringing these new technologies to major field training exercises at garrisons across the Army.

The battalion mobilized for deployment in September 1990 to Southwest Asia where it would find itself under operational control of the 11th Signal Brigade. The 67th remained a subordinate unit of that brigade for the duration of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm into February 1998 when it joined two other battalions under the newly reactivated 93rd Signal Brigade.

The September 11, 2001 attacks and resulting national security demands necessitated the 67th's deepened involvement in Homeland Defense Initiative missions. The battalion was called to duty January 2, 2004 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. With the disbandment of the 93rd, 67th folded into the 35th Signal Brigade upon the latter's relocation from Fort Bragg to Fort Gordon.[3] Two more deployments, both principally to Iraq, would follow in October 2006 and August 2009 with each concluding in January 2008 and July 2010, respectively. The battalion again deployed in February 2013 on an eight-country tour wherein it furnished communications support across 15 locations.[4][5] A 120-soldier team drawn from the 518th Tactical Installation and Networking Company deployed May 8, 2016 to join the 160th Signal Brigade providing communications support[6] followed by the remainder of the battalion that December[7] in support of Operations Spartan Shield, Freedom Sentinel, Resolute Support, and Inherent Resolve.

Campaign Credit

World War II

Rhineland

Central Europe

Asiatic-Pacific Theater

Southwest Asia

Defense of Saudi Arabia

Liberation and Defense of Kuwait

War on Terrorism

Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army), Streamer embroidered SOUTHWEST ASIA 1990-1991

Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army), Streamer embroidered SOUTHWEST ASIA 2004

Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army), Streamer embroidered IRAQ 2009-2010[8]

"White Privilege" Brief

On March 9, 2016, news outlets around the United States reported that a presentation given in April 2015 by the 67th Signal Battalion's Equal Opportunity (EO) representative to around 400 soldiers focused on the controversial topic of "white privilege". Through a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the organization Judicial Watch, the public was made aware that the presentation included statements such as:

"Privilege exists when one group has something of value that is denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to, rather than because of anything they've done or failed to do."

"Race privilege gives whites little reason to pay a lot of attention to African Americans or to how white privilege affects them."

"Our society attaches privilege to being white and male and heterosexual regardless of your social class."[9]

Although the presentation was given as a part of the commander's annual training requirements for the battalion's EO program, in an official statement regarding the training event a U.S. Army representative stated, "The unit (Equal Opportunity) instructor (Sergeant First Class Thomas Michleski) deviated from the authorized topic and content which was provided, to prevent further instances, all unit instructors will receive additional training on the importance of following Army EO training requirements"[10]

References

1. "History of the 67th ESB". U.S. Army Signal School.
2. Raines, Rebecca (2005). Signal Corps. WASHINGTON, D.C.: CENTER OF MILITARY HISTORY. pp. 179–180.
3. Selmek, Christopher (March 22, 2007). "From 93rd to the 35th, Signal Brigade re-flags in historic ceremony". Army Communicator.
4. Carter, Dianne (February 12, 2013). "67th Signal Battalion starts nine-month deployment". U.S. Army Homepage.
5. Rivera, Wilson (October 4, 2013). "67th ESB Soldiers reunite with families after deployment".
6. Cohen, Ashley (May 10, 2016). "Fort Gordon Soldiers deploy on Mother's Day". U.S. Army Homepage.
7. Johnson, Bianca (December 21, 2016). "Casing ceremony precedes battalion's deployment". The Augusta Chronicle.
8. "67th Lineage and Honors". 2010-09-23. Retrieved 2017-06-12.
9. "Judicial Watch: Documents Reveal US Army Indoctrinated Soldiers on Dangers of 'White Privilege' - Judicial Watch". Judicial Watch. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
10. "Army says diversity training sent wrong signal". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2016-03-18.