19-03-2025
Jackie Robinson's Department of Defense profile erasure, explained
Jackie Robinson is an American hero. But he was not treated like one in a confounding move by the United States Department of Defense.
The U.S. Department of Defense temporarily removed a section on its website dedicated to Robinson's military service as part of the "Sports Heroes Who Serves" series. The URL originally included the terms "sports-heroes" in the link before "DEI" was added before it. The page was eventually restored to its original form.
Robinson, a former NL MVP and World Series Champion, famously broke Major League Baseball's color barrier when he signed a contract to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Before that, Robinson was also a standout athlete at Pasadena Junior College and UCLA. After his collegiate athletics career, he was drafted for service during World War II.
This was reportedly a directive from the Pentagon and President Donald Trump to remove DEI from the federal government (via ESPN):While the story about Robinson was eventually restored, other stories (e.g. one about Pee-Wee Reese's embrace of Robinson) were never deleted.
Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot issued a statement to ESPN's Jeff Passan:DEl - Discriminatory Equity Ideology does the opposite. It Divides the force, Erodes unit cohesion and Interferes with the services' core warfighting mission. Robinson was drafted and reported to serve in the military in 1942. He eventually served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army during World War II.
He joined the 761st Tank Battalion, sometimes known as the Black Panthers.
In 1943, Robinson refused an order to move to the back of an Army bus. He then coached for Army athletics teams and was later acquitted before he was honorably discharged in 1944.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Jackie Robinson's Department of Defense profile erasure, explained
