Overview

• The Pentagon has instructed military leaders to identify and sequester books on diversity, anti-racism, and gender issues by May 21, citing their incompatibility with the Department's core mission.
• A temporary Academic Libraries Committee has been established to oversee the review process, utilizing flagged search terms such as 'affirmative action,' 'critical race theory,' and 'white privilege.'
• Nearly 400 books were previously removed from the U.S. Naval Academy library, including works by Maya Angelou and titles addressing the Holocaust and civil rights.
• In a separate memo, service academies were ordered to adopt merit-only admissions policies, explicitly prohibiting consideration of race, ethnicity, or sex.
• The directive has drawn criticism over concerns about academic freedom, historical preservation, and representation of minority service members, with no clarity on the final disposition of sequestered books.