Twenty-six Democratic members of Congress signed a letter Monday demanding that Defense Secretary Peter Hegseth reverse course on what they describe as an unconstitutional purge of books and learning material at K-12 schools operated by the Department of Defense (DOD).
The letter comes after the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) instructed schools to pull lessons from its curriculum related to immigration, gender, and sexuality. The military academies were also made to purge any material related to diversity at all.
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This decision was made in compliance with President Donald Trump’s executive order about removing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and materials.
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The vague definition of DEI-related material has led some critics to argue these efforts as nothing more than veiled racism, with objects like portraits of Michelle Obama and posters of Harriet Tubman being pulled from classrooms. Other materials removed from classrooms include rainbow stickers in kindergarten classrooms and Black History Month decorations.
While there is not yet a complete list of books that have been pulled, the ones that are confirmed to have been removed are the following: Becoming Nicole, the biography of transgender activist Nicole Maines; Freckleface Strawberry, a children’s book by Julianne Moore about a girl embracing her freckles; No Truth Without Ruth: The Life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a children’s picture book about the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg; The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, a novel exploring friendship and redemption in Afghanistan; and surprisingly Hillbilly Elegy, a memoir about Vice President J.D. Vance’s life growing up in Appalachia.
In the letter, they demand that all reading materials stripped from shelves be restored, arguing that restricting access to books because of their potential relation to gender ideology and DEI topics violates the Constitution’s First Amendment.
They described this purge as “Orwellian,” a term used to describe something reminiscent of authoritarianism coined from George Orwell’s most famous work, 1984, which is a thought-provoking cautionary tale about the dangers of totalitarianism and fascist regimes.
According to some military personnel within the DOD, the initiatives have created an environment of fear and hostility among staff. One overseas military officer, who wished to remain anonymous to protect his job and family, told Huff Post that his spouse is a teacher at a DoDEA school and learned from them teachers in the program were under constant threat for even speaking on Trump’s anti-DEI policies.
“If they engage with the media, they will be fired; if they protest, they will be fired; if they encourage students to protest, they will be fired; if they use social media to protest changes and can be identified as a DoDEA employee, they will be fired; if they speak out at a town hall (even as a parent of a DoDEA child), they will be fired,” said the officer
While his spouse is worried about job safety, he relays that the couple’s biggest concern is for LGBTQ+ students who now feel scared and isolated. School clubs meant for LGBTQ+ students to connect with other LGBTQ+ peers are also being disbanded under anti-DEI measures.
Trump’s attacks on LGBTQ+ kids and transgender service members “hits home in so many ways,” said the officer. “It’s dehumanizing.”
The letter was also CC’d to Dr. Beth Schiavino-Narvaez, who is the director of, and Darlin Selnick, acting under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness.
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