Latest news with #CallieRodriguez
Euronews
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
NASA removes graphic novel featuring female astronaut as Trump's diversity purge continues
ADVERTISEMENT As departments and agencies across the US government eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programmes and materials under pressure from the Trump administration, the NASA website has been scrubbed of graphic novels featuring a fictional female astronaut. "First Woman: NASA's Promise to Humanity", which was initially published in 2021, revolves around Commander Callie Rodriguez, who leads a diverse space crew to the moon. As of Friday, the book — once free to download — no longer appears on NASA's website. Nor does its sequel, "First Woman: Expanding our Universe". However, an app developed to accompany the book still appears in Apple's App Store. NASA's "First Woman" graphic novel series has been taken down NASA Since the start of Donald Trump's second term in January, NASA has been complying with instructions from the White House to remove all references to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives . After Trump issued an executive order in January instructing agencies, departments and federal workers both to shut down all DEI programmes and to report on any colleagues who might attempt to 'disguise these programmes by using coded or imprecise language' in workplace communications. NASA was one of several agencies to send out a memo to all staff based on a template from the Office of Personnel Management that claimed DEI programmes "divided Americans by race, wasted taxpayer dollars, and resulted in shameful discrimination". 'The Biden Administration forced illegal and immoral discrimination programs, going by the name 'diversity, equity, and inclusion' (DEI), into virtually all aspects of the Federal Government, in areas ranging from airline safety to the military,' the letter read. 'That ends today. Americans deserve a government committed to serving every person with equal dignity and respect, and to expending precious taxpayer resources only on making America great.' In March, NASA heavily watered down the public remit of its Artemis programme, which initially promised to take people other than white American men to the Moon. 'NASA will land the first woman, first person of colour, and first international partner astronaut on the Moon using innovative technologies to explore more of the lunar surface than ever before," the site previously read. Today, that sentence is missing. Euronews Culture has contacted NASA for comment. Other agencies that have removed content related to "diversity" from their websites include the National Park Service, which restored a page related to abolitionist and Underground Railroad leader Harriet Tubman that had been removed in favour of a heavily watered-down page on "black/white cooperation". The service said the page had been removed in error.
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
NASA website removes 'First Woman' graphic novel — but here's where you can still find it
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. In 2021, NASA released a fictional graphic novel about a pioneering astronaut who becomes the first woman to step foot on the moon, Commander Callie Rodriguez, alongside her diverse crew — this novel has now been erased from the agency's main website as part of the Trump Administration's major crackdown on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) programs. There were, in fact, two graphic novels in the series; both have sadly and suddenly vanished from the space agency's official online presence. Besides 2021's "First Woman: NASA's Promise for Humanity," there was also 2023's "First Woman: Expanding Our Universe," which centered around Commander Callie Rodriguez and her intrepid adventures as the first woman to walk on the lunar surface. That second issue showcased a racially diverse team of astronauts and their thrilling mission to the moon. The graphic novels were previously free to the public on NASA's government website and were penned by Brad Gann and Steven List with artwork courtesy of Brent Donoho and Kaitlin Reid. Through the "First Woman" series, NASA aimed to help inspire a future generation of space enthusiasts deemed the "Artemis Generation," in conjunction with the agency's endeavor to truly land the first woman and first person of color on the moon via the Artemis program. "Diversity is at the core of NASA's missions, and the reason we continue breaking the boundaries of what's possible," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said back in 2023 regarding the now-banished series. "'First Woman' embodies the rich history of countless women who broke barriers and continue to lead NASA to the stars. So much of what NASA does is to inspire future explorers because each member of the Artemis Generation should feel represented in our missions. Callie's story reminds us that we will do what has never been done before — land the first woman on the moon, and it will inspire the world." — NASA denies setting 'new bans' for employees amid reports of removing LGBTQI+ symbols from offices — NASA cutting programs, workforce to comply with Trump order — 'Their loss diminishes us all': Scientists emphasize how Trump's mass NOAA layoffs endanger the world NASA has been working in the background to remove all language that specifically points out landing the first person of color and the first woman on the moon from all of its Artemis program pages. In compliance with President Trump's executive order, the agency has also excised wording around DEIA, environmental justice issues, women in leadership roles and Indigenous people from all of its public websites. This came on the heels of NASA canceling its Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity. However, though Commander Callie might be unceremoniously booted from NASA's websites, thanks to the digital library known as the Internet Archive, issues can still be read on the Wayback Machine here.
