Culture and Social Issues

Naval Academy Removes Hundreds Of Books That Push DEI

(Screen Capture/U.S. Naval Academy)

The U.S. Naval Academy on Monday began removing nearly 400 books that allegedly promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

The actions were taken after a directive from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office following President Donald Trump’s orders to remove DEI content from all federal agencies and federally contracted companies, according to the Associated Press. A list of the removed books has not yet been released.

Officials initially flagged 900 titles for review but ultimately removed about 400, according to the AP.

The Department of Defense referred the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment to the Naval Academy.

“We can confirm the U.S. Naval Academy has removed nearly 400 books from their Nimitz Library collection in order to ensure compliance with all directives outlined in Executive Orders issued by the President,” a Navy spokesman told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Nimitz Library houses roughly 590,000 print books, 322 databases, and over 5,000 print journals and magazines to support the academic inquiries and intellectual development of Midshipmen. The Naval Academy’s mission is to develop Midshipmen morally, mentally and physically in order to cultivate honorable leaders, create a culture of excellence, and prepare them for careers of service to our country.”

The Trump administration has been adamant about purging DEI practices, issuing a day-one executive order “ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing.” Trump also issued an executive order on Jan. 27 banning all DEI initiatives in the military.

Upon Trump taking office for his second term, the Pentagon immediately began overturning the Biden-era agenda, ending federally-subsidized sex-change surgeries and reversing military discharges for service members who objected to the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Naval Academy recently announced it was ending racial preferences in admissions in response to the federal directives, along with the administration warning colleges and universities to drop similar policies.

The practice of removing books due to inappropriate content has become highly controversial, with several cases being brought to the courts. Most recently, a district court in Iowa blocked the state from removing books from school libraries, claiming the law’s definition of “obscene” content is too overbroad and that “[t]he result is the forced removal of books from school libraries that are not pornographic or obscene.”

Editor’s Note: This piece has been updated with comment from the US Navy.