Veteran Charles Calvin Rogers won the Medal of Honor for his service in Vietnam
The US Department of Defense was hit with widespread backlash after a page detailing the achievements of Army Maj. Gen. Charles Calvin Rogers, a Black man who served in Vietnam, was temporarily removed from its website.
The page dedicated to Rogers has officially been restored, seemingly back to its original state. However, before the fix, internet users noticed some significant changes to the page that sparked curiosity.
The controversy began on Saturday, March 15, when the previously accessible link to the veteran’s profile suddenly led to a frustrating ‘404’ error message, leaving fans and users wondering what had happened.
Over the weekend, screenshots of the website surfaced, showing the error message and a glimpse of Rogers’ Google listing, which had previously described him as a veteran who “served through it all.” The description also highlighted his advocacy for gender and race equality during his service, specifically mentioning, “As a Black man, he worked for gender and race equality while in the service.” However, this wording was soon removed.
But the changes didn’t stop there. Observant internet users noticed that the URL associated with Rogers’ page was also altered. Initially reading ‘medal’, it was updated to ‘deimedal’, a subtle shift that sparked speculation.
The change seemed to suggest that the medal might be linked to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts, a program that Donald Trump has notably targeted in his efforts to roll back such initiatives since his return to office.
One day after Trump’s inauguration, a White House order made waves, declaring: “It is the policy of the United States to protect the civil rights of all Americans and to promote individual initiative, excellence, and hard work. I therefore order all executive departments and agencies to terminate all discriminatory and illegal preferences, mandates, policies, programs, activities, guidance, regulations, enforcement actions, consent orders, and requirements.”
The timing of this order raised eyebrows when it coincided with the removal of Rogers’ page, leading to a massive backlash. The Department of Defense found itself under fire as internet users expressed their outrage. One Twitter user vented: “This is infuriating. Charles Rogers is a Black Medal of Honor recipient who risked his life in Vietnam. The Department of Defense has just taken down his website and relabeled the URL as ‘deimedal-of-honor.’ DEI. This is an insult to this veteran’s legacy.”
As of March 17, the website detailing Charles Rogers’ remarkable achievements is back online, with the troubling ‘dei’ reference removed from the URL.
The page now highlights the heroism that earned Rogers the Medal of Honor during his service in Vietnam. Describing the pivotal moment, the site recounts how Rogers’ leadership during a brutal battle saw him run “through a hail of exploding shells to rally his dazed crewmen,” even after he was struck by an exploding round.
“Despite being wounded once more during the conflict, Rogers pressed on, killing several enemy soldiers and pushing the rest back,” the page details. “He declined medical treatment, instead focusing on getting the defensive perimeter re-established.”
Rogers was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Nixon on May 14, 1970, cementing his legacy as a true American hero.
