Nearly 400 books were removed from the U.S. Naval Academy’s library following an order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office. The books were pulled because they were deemed to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) — a move that continues the Trump administration’s push to purge DEI content across federal agencies, including policies, programs, and educational materials.
The list, which the Navy released, includes a range of works, such as Maya Angelou’s iconic autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, along with Memorializing the Holocaust, Half American (which covers the experiences of African Americans in WWII), and Pursuing Trayvon Martin, about the 2012 shooting of Trayvon Martin and its ties to racial profiling.
The list also features books on sensitive topics like gender identity, sexuality, and transgender issues, as well as works exploring race and gender, such as African American women poets, the legacy of entertainers in blackface, and the treatment of women in Islamic countries. Historical books about racism, the Ku Klux Klan, and the roles of women, gender, and race in art and literature were also targeted.
In a statement, the Navy explained that officials reviewed the Nimitz Library catalog using keyword searches to flag books for further scrutiny. After examining the preliminary list of 900 books, they decided which ones needed to be removed. Nearly 400 were pulled to comply with Executive Orders from the President.
The removals took place just before Hegseth visited the academy, an event that had been scheduled prior to the purge and was not related to it. The Pentagon has stated that the military academies are fully committed to following President Trump’s Executive Orders, which include a ban on DEI programs, policies, and curricula in K-12 schools receiving federal funding.
While the Executive Order issued in January did not initially apply to the military academies, the Pentagon shifted its focus to the Naval Academy last week after reports surfaced that it had not yet removed DEI-promoting books. A U.S. official confirmed the review and removal order was issued late last week, though it’s unclear whether it came directly from Hegseth or his staff.
West Point confirmed it had already completed a review of its curriculum and was ready to review its library content if instructed by the Army. Both the Air Force and Naval academies had also conducted curriculum reviews as required.
