As a U.S. Army veteran who served from 1992 to 2007, I am compelled to voice my profound dismay over recent actions by the Department of Defense under Secretary Pete Hegseth. The erasure of Medgar Evers – a World War II veteran and civil rights martyr – from the Arlington National Cemetery website is not just an affront to his legacy but a blatant attempt to rewrite history.

Now, as public outcry mounts, the DOD is claiming that some of the erased content will be reinstated. But let’s be clear: This backtracking does not absolve the harm already done. With this administration’s previous actions, misdirects and outright lies, they no longer get the benefit of the doubt on “mistakes.”

They are either retreating from these purges because of 

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