Trump’s DEI purge guts Air Force team tackling obstacles for women

[Jessica_Rose]

Trump's DEI purge guts Air Force team tackling obstacles for women

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trump-s-dei-purge-guts-air-force-team-tackling-obstacles-for-women/ar-AA1y32Zj?ocid=windirect&cvid=f7dc05cef9cb4085b675c2a18b570a6c&ei=50

Story by Hope Hodge Seck (29 Jan 2025)

The Air Force's top civilian leader has directed the closure of a working group that since 2008 has sought to eliminate arbitrary barriers to women's service...

The Air Force Women's Initiatives Team is among the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs across the federal government ordered to cease operations under executive orders signed by President Donald Trump as he took office.

A memo signed by acting Air Force secretary Gary Ashworth on Jan. 21 and obtained by The Washington Post directs the "disestablishment" of the Women's Initiatives Team, "effective immediately," along with other Air Force working groups that dealt with disability, LGBTQ and racial issues.

In response to questions from The Post, the Air Force said in a statement that its offices are "implementing all directives outlined in the Executive Orders issued by the President, and ensuring that they are carried out with utmost professionalism, efficiency and in alignment with national security objectives."

The role of women in the military was a centerpiece of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's bruising confirmation hearing earlier this month. Hegseth, a veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, has drawn scrutiny for comments opposing a 2015 policy that allowed women to enter front-line combat jobs, but under questioning from lawmakers he appeared to retreat from that view. Instead, he said he was focused on ensuring that the standards for such roles have not changed to accommodate women.