Tim Wise
The mass removal, which includes Maya Angelou's acclaimed memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, has prompted an immediate response from Democratic lawmakers and affected authors alike, raising concerns about academic freedom and First Amendment rights at the nation's elite military institutions.
Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee, and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) are demanding answers from the secretaries of the Army, Navy and Air Force about the book removals. On Monday, they sent letters seeking detailed information about the process and rationale behind what critics are calling an unprecedented act of censorship.
"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," they wrote."Moreover, it displays an alarming return to McCarthy-era censorship."
Author and antiracist scholar Tim Wise, whose books were among those removed, expressed his dismay at the situation. Wise has written extensively on issues of race and privilege in America, and his works have been used in educational settings across the country, including at military academies.
"It seems as though the Naval Academy, as with so many other institutions — from K-12 schools to colleges — is capitulating to the current erasure of equity and inclusion, even in their libraries," Wise told Diverse. "Essentially they are removing any books that address the legacy of racism in this country at all. Not because those volumes fail to offer valid perspectives with documentation, but because the perspectives offered offend the current administration."
The lawmakers have specifically asked the military academies to provide information about who directed the removal of books, the criteria used to select titles for removal, and whether the books have been permanently taken from academy shelves or simply relocated. They have also requested a complete list of all materials that have been removed.
This initiative follows other recent Pentagon actions aligning with the administration's anti-DEI stance, including a ban on transgender troops serving in the military. The shift represents a significant departure from previous policies that had moved toward greater inclusion within the armed forces.
Military education experts express concern that removing diverse perspectives could hamper midshipmen preparation for leadership in a global context.
"The irony of this erasure is that the people behind it would have you believe those of us whose books have been removed are insufficiently grateful for the progress made in this country when it comes to racism," Wise added. "We dwell too much on the negative, they insist. But in truth, it is only by grappling with the disturbing history of racism, and its depths, that one can fully appreciate the very progress they would have us lift up."
Student reactions at the Naval Academy have been mixed, with some midshipmen expressing frustration at what they see as political interference in their education, while others support the administration's efforts to refocus military education on what they
Wise characterized the ban as revealing about American attitudes toward confronting difficult historical truths.
"In a nation run by people committed to uncritical, unthinking propaganda, it is an honor to have my books banned and treated as dangerous knowledge,” he said. “Every act of censorship merely proves the points being made in my books: that too many white Americans are afraid to confront the reality of American history."
