West Point's Mission Statement Shift Leaves Many Perplexed And Upset

The announcement was made by Superintendent Lt. Gen. Steve Gilland on Monday, causing apprehension that the two-century-old institution may be succumbing to the 'woke' culture.

The iconic phrase "duty, honor, country" has been replaced with the more nebulous term "Army values." The previous mission statement of the academy was: "To educate, train and inspire the Corps of Cadets so that each graduate is a commissioned leader of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country and prepared for a career of professional excellence and service to the nation as an officer in the United States Army."

The revised mission statement, as per a news release from the academy, now reads: "To build, educate, train, and inspire the Corps of Cadets to be commissioned leaders of character committed to the Army Values and ready for a lifetime of professional excellence and service to the Army and Nation."

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In a message to the "West Point Teammates," Gilland explained the rationale behind the change. "Duty, Honor, Country is foundational to the United States Military Academy’s culture and will always remain our motto," he wrote. "It defines who we are as an institution and as graduates of West Point." He added, "These three hallowed words are the hallmark of the cadet experience and bind the Long Gray Line together across our great history."

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However, Gilland also noted that the academy's responsibility to produce leaders for the nation's wars necessitates regular self-assessment. He revealed that the academy had undertaken an 18-month review of its purpose and strategy, in collaboration with West Point leaders and stakeholders. The recommendation to change the mission statement was then put forward to the Army's top leadership.

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Both Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George approved the change, Gilland confirmed. He argued that the Army values encompass "Duty and Honor and Country." He also highlighted that the academy's mission statement has been revised nine times in the past century, with "Duty, Honor, Country" being added only in 1998.

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Gilland concluded by reaffirming the academy's unwavering focus on developing leaders of character for the Army. As a 1989 graduate of West Point, he confirmed that the mission statement during his time did not include "Duty, Honor, Country," but it did not diminish the value he placed on these words.

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His tenure at the academy coincided with the 25th anniversary of Gen. Douglas MacArthur's final speech to the Corps of Cadets, titled "Duty, Honor, Country." MacArthur, a former superintendent of the institution and Army Chief of Staff in the 1930s, went on to achieve iconic status during World War II.

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MacArthur's famous pledge, "I shall return," to the Philippines during the early dark days of the conflict when Japanese forces took the Pacific country, was fulfilled. At the end of the war, MacArthur was named supreme allied commander, overseeing the surrender of Japan in Tokyo Harbor and then the military occupation of the nation, which he helped transition to a constitutional democracy.

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In May 1962, the retired five-star general delivered his final speech to West Point's cadets, urging them to live up to the academy's motto: Duty, Honor, Country. On the speech's 25th anniversary in 1987, the entire Corps of Cadets, 4,000-strong, assembled in West Point's Eisenhower Hall to watch a film of MacArthur's speech set against scenes from his legendary life.

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The general's speech, which new cadets had to memorize during basic training at the academy, emphasized the importance of "Duty, Honor, Country." He said, "Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be. They are your rallying points: to build courage when courage seems to fail; to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith; to create hope when hope becomes forlorn."

MacArthur concluded his speech by telling the cadets, "In the evening of my memory, always I come back to West Point. Always there echoes and re-echoes: Duty, Honor, Country." It remains to be seen whether today's West Point cadets will echo these sentiments, even with "Duty, Honor, Country" no longer part of the mission statement.