Pentagon orders DEI quotas canceled in service academies

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has mandated that admission be based strictly on merit

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has issued a directive ordering all military service academies to stop considering diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) criteria in admissions decisions.

The memo, signed on Friday, states that MSA admission offices will no longer be able to apply any “considerations of race, ethnicity or sex” when considering applicants and must base their decisions “exclusively on merit.”

Academies have 30 days to adhere to the new standards.

Additionally, merit-based scores may also consider “unique athletic talent” or other experiences such as prior military service and performance at a MSA preparatory school.

“This ensures only the most qualified candidates are admitted, trained and ultimately commissioned to lead,” Hegseth wrote in the order, adding that “selecting anyone but the best erodes lethality, our warfighting readiness and undercuts the culture of excellence in our Armed Forces.”

In a separate memo issued on Friday and seen by the Associated Press, Hegseth also ordered military leaders and commanders at the Pentagon to go through their libraries and remove all books related to DEI issues.

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The document reportedly stated that educational materials at libraries “promoting divisive concepts and gender ideology are incompatible with the Department’s core mission” and that military leaders must “promptly identify” books that are not compatible with that mission and sequester them by May 21.

The reforms follow a broader campaign by the administration of President Donald Trump to remove DEI-related programs and content from the military, including books in military libraries and instruction on gender ideology.

Shortly after assuming office in January, Trump signed an executive order titled ‘Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness’, which prohibited any race- or sex-based preferences in the armed forces. That order similarly called for all military personnel decisions, including recruitment and promotions, to reflect a merit-based framework.

The directive also outright banned transgender individuals from serving in the US military and instructed the Department of Defense to identify and dismiss all service members who have a history of gender dysphoria. Last week, the US Supreme Court upheld the president’s ban.