WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Marine Sgt. Alfredo Gonzalez’s webpage was removed from the U.S. Navy history website, as part of the Trump administration’s push to remove DEI content from military websites.
Gonzalez died during the Vietnam war at 21 years old, after being hit in the chest with a rocket propelled grenade. For his bravery, Gonzalez was awarded with the Medal of Honor. The Navy named a guided missile destroyer after Gonzalez.
Earlier this week, Congressman Vicente Gonzalez said the military is trying to erase history.
“I can’t think of anything more disgraceful than to dishonor somebody who wore a uniform and fought for our freedom,” said Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas).
A review of the internet archive shows the diversity section of the Naval History and Heritage Command website is no longer reachable. That section featured stories of African Americans, women, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans and LGBTQI+ personnel in the Navy.
The Navy also briefly removed a section about people who had U.S. Navy ships named in their honor. That section, including Sgt. Gonzalez’s page on that portion of the Naval History website, has now been restored.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he wants the Pentagon to eliminate Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. In February, Chief Pentagon Spokesman and Assistant to the Secretary of the Navy, Sean Parnell, issued a memo calling on the department to remove DEI content from websites, social media pages and video databases.
The Pentagon has taken down thousands of pages honoring women and minority groups. They’ve also restored pages.
Parnell acknowledged in a press release on March 21, some information was taken down that shouldn’t have been removed. He renewed his commitment to removing DEI content.
“Anybody who says, in the Department of Defense, that diversity is our strength is frankly incorrect,” Parnell said at a press briefing on March 17. “Our shared purpose and unity are our strength.”
The Department of Defense referred our questions about Sgt. Gonzalez to the U.S. Navy. The Navy hasn’t responded to our request.
