Since the inception of the All Volunteer Force, Blacks have been somewhat overrepresented in the active duty ranks, while Whites and Hispanics have been underrepresented as compared to the nation's youth population as a whole. We would expect this to be reflected in the makeup of the Reserve Forces. Table 5.3 demonstrates that the proportion of prior service Black accessions in each of the Selected Reserve components is higher than their representation among the 20- to 39-year-old civilian labor force. Conversely, Hispanics are underrepresented across the board, with the exception of the USMCR’s prior service recruits. In previous years, Whites also have made up a smaller proportion of Reserve accessions than of the comparison group. However, in FY 1999, the proportion of NPs White accessions in the ARNG, USMCR, and ANG and prior service White accessions in the ARNG, USNR, ANG, and USAFR was higher than in the civilian comparison groups.

Black females represented the largest proportion of minority Reserve accessions (see Appendix Tables C-3 and C-11).  Across the Reserve Component, the proportion of Black women (27 and 32 percent for NPs and prior service, respectively) was nearly twice that of Black men (14 and 17 percent for NPs and prior service, respectively).  The USAR had the highest proportion of Black female recruits (32 percent of NPs and 38 percent of prior service).  The USAFR had 35 percent NPs Black females and 32 percent prior service Black females.