Book ban at military service academies draws flak from Congress
WASHINGTON – Democrats in Congress demanded answers from the Pentagon on reported book bans at the service’s elite academies, a new policy that is meant to remove “woke” ideology from the elite colleges.
Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, and Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., are sending letters Monday to the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force seeking information on books removed from service academy shelves.
The Pentagon has in recent months implemented President Donald Trump’s directive to eliminate materials that could be considered advancing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Among those actions is a ban on the service of transgender troops. Now, the anti-DEI policy in the military appears aimed at curriculum and materials at the service academies.
“I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou is one of almost 400 books removed at the Naval Academy, The New York Times reported Friday.
Democrats on the House Armed Services Committee asked the military academies who directed the removal of books, how the books were selected and if they’ve been taken from the shelves.
“If true, this is a blatant attack on the First Amendment and a clear effort to suppress academic freedom and rigor at the United States Naval Academy,” according to a draft of the letter obtained by Paste BN. “Moreover, it displays an alarming return to McCarthy-era censorship.”
Joseph McCarthy, a Republican who served in the U.S. Senate from Wisconsin in the 1950s, claimed that Communists had infiltrated the federal government. He led high-profile investigations into alleged subversion and espionage. A confrontation with the Army in 1953 led to the nationally televised hearings that damaged McCarthy's public image, cast doubt on his allegations, and saw him censured by his peers.