WASHINGTON D.C. – More than 400 books have been “taken off the shelves” from the U.S. Naval Academy’s Library over the past week, in accordance with an order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, reports NBC News.
Gone are books such as Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, as well as other books acknowledging the struggles of protected communities, according to an NBC News article.
Tim Hawkins, a Navy spokesman, told NBC that the books were removed to “comply with directives outlined in Executive Orders issued by the President.”
The Trump administration has begun purging alleged DEI content from federal facilities, policies, program funding, and more, said NBC News.
NBC reports that additional titles named in the Naval Academy DEI purge included Memorializing the Holocaust, Half American, and Pursuing Trayvon Martin.
Each of these pieces of literature highlight perseverance against injustice, something each of them continue to fight, said NBC News.
Other topics noted in Trump’s content ban include race, sexuality and gender, and gender identity, according to the article. NBC writes that books concerning trans rights and history have also been removed following Trump’s executive orders.
In addition to these protected groups, works concerning hate groups such as the Ku Klux Klan have also been noted on the ban list of historical books regarding racism, reported NBC News.
NBC said keyword searches were used to find books that met the criteria outlined in President Trump’s orders, according to a statement provided by the Navy. Initial review of these keyword searches identified around 900 pieces, 400 of which were later removed, according to the article.
Commander Tim Hawkins said that “departmental officials closely examined the preliminary list to determine which books required removal,” added NBC.
According to the article, Trump’s January executive order which banned “DEI instruction” for K-12 schools that receive federal funding does not affect every military academy, such as those in Maryland, Colorado, and New York, which are classified as colleges.
The banning of DEI books from the U.S. Naval Academy’s website came after a report scrutinizing how they had not yet complied with Trump’s orders, writes NBC News.
So far, all government agencies/entities have shown compliance with Trump’s Executive Order, says the NBC article—an official for the U.S. Military Academy in West Point confirmed they would complete a review of their curriculum if mandated by the Army.
NBC reports that other Air Force and Naval academies have displayed similar sentiments regarding the implementation of Trump’s orders.
These gradual implementations resulting from Trump’s orders have caused significant backlash from politicians, community leaders, and citizens that are witnessing or even experiencing an erasure of history as a result of these content purges, writes NBC News.
