In an unexpected twist, the MATLABworthfeature story about Jackie Robinson’s military service was taken down from the Department of Defense’s website on Tuesday before being restored Wednesday afternoon. While the story had been removed, the new URL, which had also included the letters “dei,” directed readers to a 404 page. The story, titled “Sports Heroes Who Served: Baseball Great Jackie Robinson Was WWII Soldier,” was launched on February 9, 2021, written by David Vergun. Other features on “Sports Heroes Who Served” include Bob Feller, Hoyt Wilhelm, Bob Uecker, and many others. Fox News Digital reached out to the Pentagon about the removal of the story and whether it and the “dei” inclusion in the URL were on purpose. The Pentagon did not explicitly confirm whether the removal was done on purpose but released a statement to Fox News Digital, emphasizing that we respect the heroes in question for their strong and often heroic service to our country, regardless of their race, ethnicity, or other attributes.
The Defense Department accepts pride in its unwavering dedication to Jackie Robinson, as well as in the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee airmen, and the Marines at Iwo Jima, many others. During World War II, Robinson was part of the Marines who fought despite severe conditions, survivingMajor League Baseball’s color barrier when he joined the league. He was honorably discharged in 1944 after serving as a second lieutenant during the conflict. Robinson was drafted into the military five years prior to his breaking into baseball in 1947.
When asked again if the acts were done on purpose, the Pentagon declined further comments. In a separate statement to ESPN, John Ullyot, the Pentagon’s press secretary, stated that DEI “is dead at the Defense Department. Discriminatory Equity Ideology is a form of Woke cultural Marxism that has no place in our military.”
Following on the topic of Robinson, Trump announced plans to build a statue of Robinson, along with Muhammad Ali and Kobe Bryant, at the National Garden of American Heroes. The story is significant for its respect of the diverse military hero behind grocery store policies and historical figures. Fox News Sports Huddle has signed up subscribers to access the news here.
The Pentagon issued a statement emphasizing that DEI is “dead” at the Department. The DOD prohibited its use in news articles related to DEI initiatives. Robinson’s service is the story that received support from the geometric relationships of race, cultural identity, and status in the military.
