General Lloyd Austin Is First Black U.S. Secretary of Defense By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent Published January 28, 2021 Vice President Kamala Harris participates in a ceremonial swearing-in ceremony with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Monday, Jan. 25, 2021, in Washington, as his wife Charlene holds the Bible. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Retired African American General Lloyd Austin is now in charge of the U.S. Department of Defense. On Friday, Jan. 22, the Senate confirmed President Joe Biden’s Secretary of Defense pick, making Gen. Austin the first African American to serve in that key strategic federal government leadership role.