Exclusive: The exchange of the US Army Academy mission statement from “duty, honor, country” to “army values” claims that this time, by a conservative judicial and government watchdog group claiming to have engaged in the “concealment” scheme in 2024 when it changed its mission statement as part of its efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion.
On March 11, 2024, West Point Principal Lt. Gen. Steven Giland publicly announced that West Point would renew its mission and insert the term “army value” in place of “duty, honor, country.” Still, Ziland emphasized that “duty, honor, nation” remains the motto of West Point, as it has been since 1898.
Judicial Watch obtained the document via the Freedom of Information Act, which requires all emails regarding the removal of “duty, honor, country” from a mission statement between West Point officials.
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Among the judicial surveillance obtained is documentation of Gilland’s details on the speaker’s mission statement for Founder’s Day, which was sent on March 23, 2024. Notes tell the speaker to avoid saying “deleted.”
The memo does not explicitly connect any changes to the mission statement to the DEI initiative.
However, judicial surveillance argues that the documents of the stories it obtained imply that the DEI is a factor in the changes to the mission statement. This also includes the FAQ section in the document that appears to underestimate the role of DEI, claiming that only five to eight students each year are fully advocating for West Point’s diversity and inclusion research.
“These records detail how the DEI Agenda changed West Point’s mission statement and how leadership under the Biden administration tried to hide it,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton told Fox News Digital in a statement Thursday.
However, in a memo that outlines the topic of the mission statement, Giland urged speakers to oppose the narrative that the changes to the mission statement were made for political purposes.
“Some audiences don’t recognize that Army values are defined terms, so avoid comparing them to DHC and AV to highlight the seven real values and counter the social media narrative of Army values changing for political reasons.
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The US Military Academy in West Point is an elective institution that prepares students to become US military officers. (istock)
“Avoid the perception that the external review team is political or has made a decision. The academy chose them. They advised. The academy’s leadership made a decision,” the document said.
The term “army values” maintains “duty” and “honor” in its core values, but also includes: loyalty, respect, selfless service, integrity, personal courage.
Giland said in a statement announcing the changes that “country” is reflected in the term “loyalty.”
“The values of the Army include obligations and honor, and the country is reflected in loyalty, with true faith and loyalty to the United States Constitution, the Army, your troops and other soldiers,” he said in a announcement regarding the change in the mission statement.
Giland also said that “duty, honor, country” is “the foundation of the culture of the US Military Academy and always remains our motto.”
An Army spokesman directed Fox News Digital to Gilland’s original announcement, writing, “It’s absolutely focused on developing character leaders ready to lead Army soldiers on an increasingly deadly battlefield.”
West Point is one of several US military academies for training students and becoming military officers.
Meanwhile, West Point’s mission statement has been changed nine times in the past century, and the words “duty, honor, country” did not appear in West Point’s mission statement until 1998.
As of March 2024, West Point’s mission statement was “to build, educate, train and inspire candidate bodies to ask cadet leaders who are dedicated to the values of cadets and who are ready to serve the Army and the country for life.”
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West Point cadet in formation. (US military academy)
West Point’s previous mission statement, first adopted in 2005, stated, “To educate, train and inspire cadet organizations, each alumni has made it a leader of the delegated character of characters in preparation for careers of professional excellence and service as a US Army officer.
Then West Point manager, Lt. Gen. William Lennox, called for a change in 2005, and then-Army Prime Minister General Peter Schelmer approved the change.
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Meanwhile, Republicans pushed to incorporate “duty, honor, nation” into their mission statements. For example, Sen. Ted Cruz of R-Texas led the legislation in January to add words to the Military Academy’s mission statement.
“For centuries, the US Army has set global standards of military excellence, in order for its leaders to embody a life of selfless service and embody the values of “duty, honor, nation.” “Deleting these core values from the mission statement risks eroding the foundations of American military leaders,” Cruz said in a January statement.
Diana Stancy is a political reporter for Fox News Digital, covering the White House.
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