A lot of people online are talking about a big change in the U.S. military. The claim going around is this: “War Secretary Pete Hegseth has canceled a committee that supports women in the military because he doesn’t want women to serve.” That’s a strong statement—and it’s going viral. But is it true?
Let’s take a closer look at what really happened, why it happened, and what it means for America’s fighting force.
The committee in question is called DACOWITS, short for the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services. It was created back in 1951, during the Korean War. Its original mission was to help bring more women into the military. Over the years, it made more than 1,100 recommendations, and almost all of them were adopted in some way.
So why would Secretary Hegseth shut it down after 74 years?
According to Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson, DACOWITS was no longer focused on helping women succeed in the military in a way that improves national defense. Instead, Wilson said the committee had shifted toward pushing a “divisive feminist agenda” that hurt combat readiness. In other words, the military’s top priority—winning wars—was being put at risk by social and political goals.
Hegseth himself posted online that the decision was not about keeping women out of the military. “FACT CHECK: Wrong,” he wrote. “We axed the committee that is focused on advancing a divisive feminist agenda that hurts combat readiness. We are cleansing the Department of wokeness.”
So what exactly was this “divisive agenda”?
Recent reports from DACOWITS show that the committee had pushed for things like increasing the percentage of women in certain military jobs, integrating women into previously male-only units, and even changing how female service members are shown in the media. The committee also raised concerns about the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and asked the military for more information about abortion and contraception access.
These moves, according to critics like Hegseth, were less about making the military stronger and more about pushing political or social messages. In his view, that’s not what the Department of Defense should be doing.
This isn’t the first time Hegseth has taken on what he calls “woke” programs in the military. In April, he also moved to cut back the Women, Peace & Security (WPS) program, which was connected to the United Nations. That program focused on involving women in peace talks and dealing with how war affects women and girls.
Hegseth called WPS a “woke” program that distracts troops and commanders from their real job—fighting wars. He said the Department of Defense would do only what is legally required for WPS and would aim to end it completely in the next budget.
Under the Trump administration, there’s been a clear push to refocus the military on warfighting and readiness. That means removing programs that are seen as social experiments or political distractions. Hegseth has said his main goals are to rebuild the military, bring back a strong warrior spirit, and get rid of policies that weaken standards.
He’s also making changes to the way service members are promoted. The new idea is to reward those who are involved in actual combat and military operations—not those who check boxes for diversity or political goals.
There’s even been a change in Army fitness rules. Soldiers who score high on the new fitness test no longer have to meet traditional body fat standards. The goal is to reward real performance, not just appearances.
So, back to the original claim: Did Hegseth shut down a committee that supports women in the military just because he doesn’t want women to serve?
The answer is no. What he shut down was a committee he believed had lost its way—one that had stopped focusing on combat readiness and started focusing on pushing feminist and political messages. Women still serve in the military, and they still have paths to succeed. What’s changing is the focus: mission first, politics out.
In the end, this is about making sure America’s military is ready to win wars—not win social media points.