Source: Star Tribune via Getty Images / Getty / Tuskegee Airmen / US Airforce

Donald Trump’s attack on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the military is in full swing, and lesson plans featuring the Tuskegee Airmen and Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) are the first victims.

*Update 1:20 PM*

After facing severe bipartisan blowback for its decision, the US Air Force did an about-face and will no longer remove a video honoring the Tuskegee Airmen from courses during basic training.

New and highly unqualified Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the decision after the US Air Force announced that video will remain part of the curriculum.

Per The Grio:

“This will not stand,” Hegseth wrote in response to Senator Katie Britt, R-Ala., who pointed out that even Trump previously celebrated the contributions of the Tuskegee Airmen.

“I have no doubt Secretary Hegseth will correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance we’ve seen in recent days,” Britt posted on X. “President Trump celebrated and honored the Tuskegee Airmen during his first term, promoting legendary aviator Charles McGee to Brigadier General and pinning his stars in the Oval Office.”

“We’re all over it Senator. This will not stand,” Hegseth wrote in response.

Original story

A US official confirmed CBS News reports that the US Airforce has removed lesson plans about the Black fighter pilots best known for their heroics during World War II and WASPs, the female World War II pilots who were crucial to the war effort by ferrying warplanes for the US military have been dropped from the US Air Force curriculum.

The official told CBS that lesson plans related to diversity are being reviewed to determine whether they comply with the Orange Menace, Donald Trump’s ridiculous executive order calling for the end of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the federal government.

The now-removed videos were shown to US Air Force troops as part of the DEI courses they took during basic training.

According to the National Park Service, the Tuskegee Airmen were founded in 1941 in Tuskegee, Alabama, when the US Air Force started a program to train Black servicemen to be Air Corps Cadets.

When the war was over, the Tuskegee Airmen completed 1,578 combat missions, earning some of the highest honors in the Army Air Corps.

WASPs were trained to fly and ferry new bombers straight off the assembly line to airfields. Then, they would be shipped off to war. This allowed male pilots to remain on the battlefield and focus on combat missions. WASPs most recently earned the honor of being buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Per CBS News: 

An Air Force official told CBS News: “Immediate steps were taken to remove curriculum that is now under review to ensure compliance with Executive Orders issued by the president. Historical videos were interwoven into US Air Force and Space Force curriculum and were not the direct focus of course removal actions. Additional details on curriculum updates will be provided when they’re available.”

It was not immediately clear how long the review would take. CBS News reached out to the White House for comment.

The problem may not be with the historical videos themselves, but that they were used in Air Force basic military training DEI coursework. However, the lack of clearer guidance has sent the Air Force and other agencies scrambling to take the broadest approach to what content is removed to make sure they are in compliance.

Since setting foot back in the White House, Trump’s racist agenda has been in full swing, as he is targeting DEI, one of the GOP’s newest talking points, claiming he’s returning the federal government to a “merit-based system,” aka making it white again.

Users on X, formerly Twitter, have been sounding off on the obvious erasure of Black history and Trump and the MAGA movement’s ongoing attacks on DEI policies.

My grandfather was one of the original five Tuskegee airmen, Charles DeBow, and my youngest son is named after his co-pilot. They fought for equal rights and for all of America in WWII when many worked to undermine their efforts. To erase their legacy is beyond unconscionable. pic.twitter.com/wMgyzsUUD8

— Harry Alford (@HarryAlford3) January 25, 2025

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We are in for a very long 4 years having to deal with Donald Trump, AGAIN.

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