Pentagon Secretary Hegseth Bans Race and Gender Books, Overhauls West Point Curriculum, Enforces Merit-Based Admissions

Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, has initiated a series of reforms at the Department of Defense and its military academies within his first 100 days in office. These changes include a cultural overhaul at West Point, where books related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have been removed from the library, and syllabuses have been revised to exclude works by Black authors, discussions of Native American genocide in history classes, and analyses of racial discrimination in philosophy courses. These actions have led to the resignation of two professors and a librarian. Hegseth has publicly stated that the resigning West Point professor "will not be missed." Additionally, Hegseth has issued new orders for service academies that ban books dealing with race and gender topics and mandate that future admissions be based solely on merit, with exceptions only for unique athletic talent or prior military service. These reforms align with the policies of President Donald Trump regarding military readiness and strict service standards. The Pentagon has also announced the end of what it terms "lefty social experimentation" and a reduction in the number of senior officers.