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3mo ago

Air Force Restores Tuskegee Airmen, WASP Videos After Curriculum Review

The videos, briefly removed to comply with Trump's DEI ban, will resume in basic training with revisions that exclude prohibited content.

FILE - Tuskegee Airmen, from left, Audley Coulthurst of New York, William Johnson of Glen Cove, N.Y., Wilfred R. DeFour of New York, and Herbert C. Thorpe of Rome, N.Y., are honored by members of the New York Assembly upon their 75th Anniversary of the 332nd Fighter Group of the U.S. Army Air Corps during a recognition ceremony in the Assembly Chamber at the state Capitol, June 16, 2016, in Albany, N.Y. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)
Tuskegee Airman
Three veterans of the famed Tuskegee Airmen fighter group, Theodore Johnson, Dr. Eugene Derricotte and James Bynum, were honored at Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio in 2015.
Pilot Lorraine Rodgers of Alexandria, Virginia attends a Congressional Gold Medal ceremony at the US Capitol on March 10, 2010 in Washington, DC. The ceremony was held to honor the Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) of WWII. The WASP was a pioneering organization of civilian female pilots employed to fly military aircrafts under the direction of the United States Army Air Forces during World War II.

Overview

  • The U.S. Air Force temporarily removed training videos on the Tuskegee Airmen and Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) to comply with President Trump’s executive order banning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
  • The videos were part of a broader curriculum review to ensure compliance with the new executive order, which aims to eliminate DEI-related content across federal agencies and the military.
  • Air Force officials confirmed that the videos, focusing on the historical contributions of the Tuskegee Airmen and WASPs during World War II, will continue to be shown in basic training starting January 27, with revisions to remove DEI-specific material.
  • The Tuskegee Airmen were the first Black military pilots, whose combat success helped lead to the desegregation of the U.S. armed forces, while the WASPs were civilian women pilots who supported military operations during the war.
  • The removal and subsequent reinstatement of the videos sparked criticism from advocacy groups and officials who emphasized the historical significance of these groups beyond DEI frameworks.