1. United States
2. Ill.
3. Letter

The attempt to remove diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) content from military materials is severely misguided. This purge approach unjustly targets and disrespects the invaluable contributions of women, minorities, and underrepresented groups to our nation's armed forces. Historical records documenting their achievements and the evolution of a more inclusive military are being lost. Significant military milestones like the Tuskegee Airmen and first female infantry graduates should be preserved, not erased. Furthermore, the haphazard methodology has led to the mistaken flagging of unrelated content, such as the iconic Enola Gay aircraft photos and images of service members simply because they have the word "gay" in their names. This overly broad directive threatens to eradicate vital historical records irrelevant to DEI. If the goal is to address perceived discrimination, there are far more judicious approaches that avoid inflicting collateral damage on our military's legacy. Continuing down this path serves only to undermine unit cohesion, morale, and operational readiness by disrespecting the diverse backgrounds and sacrifices of those who served. I urge you to reconsider this harmful policy and explore more nuanced solutions that uphold our forces' proud history of progress.