BUZZ
‘A slap in the face to our service and our history,’ female captain says
The U.S. Naval Academy is facing complaints from some of its alumni for not celebrating the 50th anniversary of females being admitted to the institution.
Monday marked the anniversary, which the academy has celebrated in past milestone years, The Baltimore Banner reports.
“It is a slap in the face to our service and our history,” retired Navy Capt. Catherine Masar told the news outlet. “The saddest part is the missed opportunity for the midshipmen, particularly the female midshipmen, to meet and learn from the trailblazers.”
Some linked the decision to President Donald Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who opposes women serving in military combat roles.
“I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated,” Hegseth said in a 2024 podcast hosted by Shawn Ryan.
Hegseth also opposes lowering military standards for the purpose of allowing more women to fill specific roles.
To mark the anniversary, the Naval institution’s alumni association did host a gala in April, but some said the academy should have marked the occasion, too.
Retired Lt. Col. Anthony Verducci, president of the first coed class, said it’s impossible to tell the history of the academy without talking about the first class of graduates to include women. His classmate Marjorie Morley Bachman, one of the first female graduates, said she’s “incredibly disappointed” that the academy chose not to celebrate the milestone.
But retired Cmdr. Kathy Slevin Clore, also from the first coed class, said she understands the decision. She spent her 20-year career in the Navy refusing to be defined by her gender.
A self-described “reluctant pioneer,” Slevin Clore said being a woman at the academy made her a target. Her peers once wrote “Hang it up, bitch” in a women’s bathroom stall, and at another point a male student pinned her against a wall and covered her mouth.
“I never want to be known as a woman midshipman,” she said. “My identity is as a midshipman.”
The decision also drew backlash from U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat and a member of the academy’s Board of Visitors.
“The history of the United States Naval Academy is not complete without the women of the Naval Academy,” Van Hollen said. “What’s more, ensuring that the Naval Academy reflects the diversity and talents of all Americans is critical to its strength and success.”
In recent years, the U.S Naval Academy and other military higher education institutions have faced criticism for embracing identity politics and other leftist ideologies.
Responding, President Trump issued an executive order last year to end diversity, equity, and inclusion offices in service academies and stop “preference based on race or sex” in admissions.
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