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The mention of the World War II Medal of Honor recipient, the Enola Gay aircraft that dropped an atomic bomb on Japan, and the first woman to pass Marine infantry training, is one of tens of thousands of photos and online posts marked for removal as the Department of Defense works to purge diversity, equality and inclusive content, according to a database obtained by Aspocsion Prass.
The database, confirmed by US authorities and published by the Associated Press, contains over 26,000 images flagged for removal in all military sectors. However, the final total can be much higher.
One official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide unpublished details, said that, considering social media pages and other websites culled for DEI content, the purge could delete a total of up to 100,000 images or posts. Officials said it is not clear whether the database has been confirmed or not.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegses had given the military until Wednesday to remove content highlighting its rank diversity efforts, following President Donald Trump’s executive order to end those programs across the federal government.
The majority of Pentagon Purges target women and minorities, including notable milestones created by the military. We will also remove numerous posts that mention various anniversary months, such as blacks, Hispanic people and women.
However, database reviews highlight the swirling confusion among agencies about what should be removed following Trump’s orders.
There are flags on aircraft and fish projects
In some cases, the photos appeared to be flagged for deletion, simply because the file contained the word “gay.” It includes images of service members with that surname and Enora Gay from the B-29 aircraft that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan during World War II.
Some photos of the California Army dr project were marked for deletion as the local engineer in the photo had a gay last name. And there were photos of Army biologists on the list. Because they mention that they record data about fish.
Getty Images Getty Images
Japan/USA: Colonel Paul Tibbets standing by the cockpit of Enola Gay, August 6, 1945, before taking off to the Hiroshima bombing.
Additionally, the Tuskegee Airmen photo, the country’s first black military pilot serving in a separate World War II unit, was listed in the database, but could be protected by the content in history.
The Air Force easily removed a new recruit training course, including Tuskegee Airlines video, shortly after Trump’s orders. It attracted the White House rage to “malicious compliance,” and the Air Force quickly reversed the removal.
Many of the images listed in the database have already been deleted. Others are still visible on Thursday, and it’s not clear whether they’ll be defeated at some point, including images of historical significance like the Tuskegee Airmen, or if they’ll be allowed to stay.
Asked about the database, Pentagon spokesman John Urito said in a statement: In rare cases where content is removed that is outside the clearly outlined scope of the directive, direct the component accordingly. ”
He declared that Hegseth “Dei is dead,” and said that efforts to put one group ahead of another through the Dei programme would erode friendship and threaten the execution of the mission.
Since taking office a week ago, President Donald Trump has signed several executive orders removing diversity, equity and inclusion from military and other government agencies. Eun Yang from News4 spoke with Professor Kaye Wise Whitehead of Loyola-Maryland to learn more about what the program is and not.
Some images are not gone
In some cases, removal was partial. The main page for a post entitled “Women’s History Month: All-Female Crew Supports Warfighters” has been deleted. However, at least one of the photographs in that collection has access to something all about the female C-17 crew. The shot from the Army Corps of Engineers, entitled “Engineering Pioneer Rememed Yon Black History Month,” has been removed.
Other photos that were flagged in the database but visible on Thursday included images of a World War II female aviation service pilot and one of the US Air Force Colonels, the country’s first female fighter pilot.
The Then-PFC image was also still displayed. Christina Fuentes Montenegro became one of the first three women to graduate from the Marine Corps’ Infantry Training Battalion, becoming the image of PFC, the recipient of the Marine Corps’ World War II Honorary Award. Harold Goncalves.
It was unclear why several other images were deleted, including a photo of the Marines entitled “Deadlift Candidates Raise Bars with Pounds,” and a photo from the National Guard website called “Kuwait in Minnesota Brothers Loonite.”
Why database?
The database of 26,000 images was created to comply with federal archival laws, so if services are referred in the future, they can show how they are compliant with the law, U.S. officials said. However, it may be difficult to ensure that the content is archived, as the individual unit’s responsibility to ensure that each image is stored.
In many cases, workers take screenshots of pages marked for deletion, but according to other officials, if that decision is made, it is difficult to restore them.
President Donald Trump began rolling back all diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility efforts within the federal government, calling them “illegal and immoral.” Reported by News4 investigative reporter Tracee Wilkins.
Marine officials said that all images in the database were “deleted or deleted.” Marines are moving orders as quickly as possible, but like other troops, there are few Pentagon civilians or contractor employees and they can remove content, officials said.
In the Marines, only one defense civilian can do their job. The Marines estimate that they have identified at least 10,000 images and stories for removal online, and 3,600 of them have been deleted after further reviews. The total does not count over 1,600 social media sites that have not yet been addressed.
Many of these social media sites were military bases or unit support groups created several years ago, leaving them idle. No one has the administrative privileges to modify and modify content yet.
Marines said the service has gained new administrative privileges so that it can pass through each site and make changes.
On February 26, the Pentagon ordered all military services to spend countless hours on long-standing website posts, photos, news articles and videos to remove the mention “promote diversity, equity and inclusion.”
If they were not able to do so by Wednesday, they were told to “temporarily remove from public displays” all content published during the four years of the Biden administration.
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Associated Press reporter Nicholas Riccardi in Denver, Christina Cassidy in Atlanta, Will Weissart and Ayana Alexander in Washington, and Christine Fernando in Chicago contributed to the report.
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This story was first released on March 6, 2025. It was re-published on March 7, 2025, and the Marine Corps said in a follow-up interview that the 10,000 items identified for removal online included both images and stories, and after further reviews, only 3,600 were removed.
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