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Jackie Robinson, DEI, Pentagon Politics and the Vile and Regressive Politics of Deep Seeded Racism!
Avid followers of the news are aware that Trump ordered the Pentagon to scan federal websites for articles, social media posts, photos, news articles, and videos and remove any web pages that “promote diversity, equity and inclusion.” Numerous websites under Pentagon control abruptly removed thousands of pages documenting the history of people of color, LGBTQ people, women, and others from marginalized backgrounds and their contributions to the American military. Following an order from Pentagon Press Secretary John Ullyot, multiple pages about baseball legend, military veteran, political activist, and public statesmen Jackie Robinson were removed, including a documentary about “Negro League” players (the term used at the time) discussing Robinson’s tenure in the military. Eventually, by March 19, at least one page about Robinson, in a series about athletes who served in the military, had been reinstated.
Tidal waves of anger and outrage were followed by intense media coverage over this scurrilous and blatant disrespect directed toward the iconic Robinson. ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote on X: “The ghouls who did this should be ashamed. Jackie Robinson was the embodiment of an American hero. Fix this now.” Christina Karl, sports editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, wrote on X…
