Arlington National Cemetery, the nation’s most hallowed ground for military veterans, has quietly wiped out online history lessons about Black, Hispanic, and female service members, stripping biographies, educational materials, and even Medal of Honor recipient lists from its website.
Source: Kevin Carter / Getty
According to the BBC, some of the erased content included biographies of Gen. Colin Powell, the Tuskegee Airmen, and WWII bomber pilot Hector Santa Anna—all figures who played pivotal roles in U.S. military history. Even links to major historical sections on African American, Hispanic, and Women’s history have vanished from public access.
The Spokesman-Review reports that lesson plans on the Civil War and U.S. Colored Troops (USCT)—Black regiments who fought for the Union—have also been erased, making it harder for educators and historians to teach about the diverse contributions of America’s military.
So what’s left? A sanitized version of America’s military history, where the sacrifices of marginalized veterans are no longer highlighted—unless you know exactly where to look.
Like what is the point? To keep us from noticing other wrongful tasks? It’s already a long list to keep up with.
DEI is Dead, So Black Military History Has To Be?
On Trump’s first day back in the White House, he wasted no time signing executive orders to ban Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in federal agencies and military branches.
Source: Kevin Carter / Getty
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell laid it out plainly in a February memo, stating:
“By March 5, the department must take all practicable steps… to remove all DoD news and feature articles, photos, and videos that promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.”
The Arlington National Cemetery fell in line.
BBC confirms that internal links leading to pages on Black, Hispanic, and female veterans are now missing, including content on:
- Gen. Colin Powell – First Black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
- The Tuskegee Airmen – WWII’s first Black military pilots, who flew 1,800+ missions
- Hector Santa Anna – A WWII B-17 bomber pilot and Berlin Airlift veteran
- 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion – The only all-Black, all-female Women’s Army Corps unit
- Thurgood Marshall – First Black Supreme Court Justice
- Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg – Still searchable, but no longer prominently listed
BBC also reports that the cemetery’s entire Civil War section has been gutted, with educational materials on Medal of Honor recipients and the U.S. Colored Troops completely erased.
Historian Sounds the Alarm: “This Won’t Be Easily Repaired”
According to the Spokesman-Review, Historian Kevin M. Levin first broke the story on his Civil War Memory Substack, stating that this is a deliberate erasure of military history.
“This is just the kind of history that we want students to be learning, a history that allows students from different backgrounds to make a meaningful connection with one of our sacred sites.”
Levin warns that restoring this information won’t be as simple as flipping a switch.
“People think that with a few clicks you can just return these sites to normal. I think we’re going to be in for a rude awakening in realizing just how much we potentially can lose.”
Doing this during #WomensHistoryMonth is crazy.
Arlington National Cemetery claims that it’s simply “aligning content” with federal policies.
A spokesperson told the Spokesman-Review:
“We are proud of our educational content and programming and working diligently to return removed content to ensure alignment with Department of Defense instruction 5400.17 and Executive Orders issued by the President.”
But BBC reports that visitors are already struggling to find historical information, with even basic “Notable Graves” pages missing from the site.
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, called the removals “deeply concerning” in an interview with The New York Times (via BBC):
“Even if you have concerns about the way DEI was handled in a number of different places, I’ve never seen a problem within the military.”
Thought we were fighting for the same country? Clearly, not the same cause.
While some content technically still exists, The Spokesman-Review reveals that it’s been made virtually impossible to find. BBC confirms that entire sections like “African American History,” “Hispanic American History,” and “Women’s History” no longer appear prominently.
Buried (literally and digitally) within the site’s internal links, users may still locate:
- Elizebeth Smith Friedman – The first female U.S. codebreaker
- Captain Joy Bright Hancock – Expanded women’s roles in the military
- Borinqueneers (65th Infantry Regiment) – The all-Hispanic unit that fought in the Korean War
But let’s be real: If you have to jump through hoops just to find history, it’s effectively erased.
What’s Next?
If you think a few clicks will undo this digital whitewashing, think again. Previously reported by BOSSIP, the Pentagon had to reverse an earlier move to erase Tuskegee Airmen training materials after public backlash. Could public pressure force Arlington Cemetery to restore its DEI content?
Historian Levin isn’t optimistic, telling The Washington Post (via The Spokesman-Review):
“The trust that’s been built up over the years is not going to be easily reparable.”
Oh honey, it’s BEEN gone. What happened to honoring America’s heroes?
This isn’t just another website update—it’s a deliberate rewriting of American military history. If the U.S. military is willing to erase Black and female veterans’ contributions, what does that say about the future of inclusion in the armed forces?
Trump’s mission to eliminate DEI isn’t just about removing policies—it’s about deleting history. For the veterans who fought and died for this country, that’s an insult of the highest order.
Wouldn’t be the first time America tried to bury the truth—but this time, we see it blatantly and bluntly happening in real time. Our government is so weird, it’s got to be illegal to be this openly racist.
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