In 2023, Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas — one of the largest U.S. Army bases — was renamed Fort Cavazos to honor General Richard Cavazos, the first Latino four-star general in Army history. It was a long-overdue step toward honoring real American heroes, not those who fought to preserve slavery.

Now, in 2025, the name Fort Hood has quietly returned — part of a sweeping move by the Defense Department under Secretary Pete Hegseth to roll back base renamings across the country. Officials claim the names now honor different people with the same last names, but let’s be honest: this is Confederate nostalgia dressed in camouflage.

Texas doesn’t need to cling to the shadows of the Confederacy to honor military service. The original renamings gave us the chance to uplift underrecognized American heroes — people of color, women, soldiers who fought for this country, not against it.

This isn’t just symbolic. These bases are where our troops live, train, and serve. The names we choose tell the world who we are — and who we stand with. Restoring the Fort Hood name, no matter who it supposedly honors now, ignores the pain these symbols cause to generations of Americans, especially Black Texans and veterans of color.

We call on Governor Greg Abbott, Texas congressional leaders, and the Department of the Army to immediately reverse this decision and restore the name Fort Cavazos in Texas.

We should move forward, not backward. Honoring diversity in service isn't “cancel culture” — it’s correction.

History belongs to all of us — not just those who wrote it first.