A list of words and phrases in red font, organized in five columns, featuring topics like abortion, accessibility, climate change, LGBTQIA+, health disparity, and more—ideal for creating a banned words list.

A growing list of words and materials are being scrubbed from government websites and documents in an attempt by the Trump administration to remove all references not only to diversity, equity and inclusion, but also to climate change, vaccines, and a host of other topics.

PEN America initially compiled a list of more than 250 words and phrases reportedly no longer considered acceptable by the Trump administration, from “abortion,” to “women,” and including “disability,” “elderly,” “Native American” and, unsurprisingly, the “Gulf of Mexico.” 

The list has now expanded to 350+ words, encompassing even desirable goals like “safe drinking water,” the mention of which can result in research grants or other agreements with the federal government getting nixed.  

Our list is most assuredly incomplete. The New York Times published a list of words banned by federal agencies. Additional terms were reported by Reuters, The Washington Post, Propublica, Science, Gizmodo, 404 Media, Popular Information, Politico’s E&E News and the nonprofit news outlet More Perfect Union, which have been aggregated into a single list, below. 

Some of these moves seem tragically comical, like the elimination of photos from a Defense Department database of the World War II B-29 aircraft Enola Gay while erasing the recognition of the service of LGBTQ+ Americans who served in the military. But this is not just the ham-handed applications of President Trump’s executive orders. The reckless manner in which this is being done without regard to the consequences illustrates its nefarious intent.

“How can we have intelligent or difficult conversations if we can’t even use the words, the most basic unit of meaning?” said Jonathan Friedman, Sy Syms managing director of U.S. Free Expression Programs. “We’re now living in a country where the government has decided that a sweeping array of everyday terms will now be erased and forbidden in government agencies, websites, or even scientific research proposals. These prohibitions on language are utterly chilling, and will impede efforts to research real world problems and advance human knowledge.”

The White House has said it did not create a banned words list but has instead left it to federal agencies to interpret how to comply with executive orders that solely recognize male and female sex or eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. Nonetheless, some departments have added terms that seem to have nothing at all to do with those executive orders.

In fact, any topic that has “received recent attention from Congress” or “widespread or critical media attention” may be subject to deletion or alteration at the National Cancer Institute, ProPublica reported. And agencies like the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, which works to find scientific solutions to challenges facing the U.S. agriculture industry, must attempt to function without mentioning water, air, soil, or groundwater pollution, or the insidious PFAS chemicals previously recognized as a major health concern to all Americans.

Even the term “cancer moonshot,” which refers to a program that aimed to cut the nation’s cancer death rate by half, has been targeted for erasure, presumably because it was started under the Obama administration and championed by Joe Biden during his term.

These policies’ tentacles already extend beyond government websites, though removing HIV resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, regardless of whether they mentioned “gender ideology” or other banned terms, is bad enough. Reports say scientists are self-censoring in hopes of improving their chances of getting government grants.

That’s exactly the sort of response the administration is hoping for, and it will immeasurably limit the research and other work supported by the federal government, universities and more, on the public’s behalf.

While every president aims to use language that reflects its priorities in its communications, the widespread restrictions on specific words represent a dystopian effort to control what Americans think and say, despite President Trump’s lip service to “freedom of speech and ending federal censorship.”

There’s nothing “free” about banning words or ideas.   

This article was originally published on March 21 and has been updated with additional reporting.

Banned Words List

abortionideology
accessibleimmigrants
accessibilityimplicit bias
activismimplicit biases
activistsinclusion
advocacyinclusive
advocateinclusive leadership
advocatesinclusiveness
affirming careinclusivity
affordable homeincrease diversity
affordable housingincrease the diversity
agricultural waterindigenous
agrivoltaicsindigenous community/people
air pollutioninequalities
all-inclusiveinequality
allyshipinequitable
alternative energyinequities
anti-racisminjustice
antiracistinstitutional
integration
asexualintersectional
assigned at birthintersectionality
assigned female at birthintersex
assigned male at birthissues concerning pending legislation
at riskjustice40
autismkey groups
aviation fuelkey people
barrierkey populations
barriersLatinx
belonglesbian
biasLGBT
biasedLGBTQ
Biased towardlow-emission vehicle
biaseslow-income housing
Biases towardsmale dominated
bioenergymarginalize
biofuelmarginalized
biogasmarijuana
biomethanemeasles
biologically femalemembrane filtration
biologically malemen who have sex with men
bipocmental health
bisexualmethane emissions
Blackmicroplastics
black and latinxmigrant
breastfeed + peopleminorities
breastfeed + personminority
Cancer Moonshotminority serving institution
carbon emissions mitigationmost risk
carbon footprintmsm
carbon marketsmulticultural
carbon pricingMx
carbon sequestrationMSI
CECNative American
changing climateNCI budget
net-zero
chestfeed + peoplenon-binary
chestfeed + personnonbinary
noncitizen
clean energynon-conforming
clean fuelnonpoint source pollution
clean powernuclear energy
clean waternuclear power
climateobesity
climate accountabilityopioids
climate changeoppression
climate-changeoppressive
climate crisisorientation
climate consultingpansexual
climate modelsPCB
climate modelpeanut allergies
climate resiliencepeople-centered care
climate riskpeople of color
climate sciencepeople + uterus
climatesmartperson-centered
climate smart agricultureperson-centered care
climate smart forestryphotovoltaic
climate variabilityPFAS
commercial sex workerPFOA
communitypolarization
community diversitypolitical
community equitypollution
confirmation biaspollution abatement
contaminants of environmental concernpollution remediation
continuumprefabricated housing
Covid-19pregnant people
cultural competencepregnant person
cultural differencespregnant persons
cultural heritageprejudice
Cultural relevanceprivilege
cultural sensitivityprivileges
culturally appropriatepromote
culturally responsivepromote diversity
definitionpromoting diversity
DEIpronoun
DEIApronouns
DEIABprostitute
DEIJpyrolysis
dieselqueer
dietary guidelines/ultraprocessed foodsQT
disabilitiesrace
disabilityrace and ethnicity
disabledracial
disadvantagedracial diversity
discriminatedracial identity
discriminationracial inequity
discriminatoryracial justice
discussion of federal policiesracially
disparityracism
diverserunoff
diverse backgroundsrural water
diverse communitiessafe drinking water
diverse communityscience-based
diverse groupsediment remediation
diverse groupssegregation
diversifiedself-assessed
diversifysense of belonging
diversifyingsex
diversitysexual preferences
diversity and inclusionsexuality
diversity/equity effortssocial justice
social vulnerability
EEJsocio cultural
EJsociocultural
entitlementsocio economic
equalitysocioeconomic status
equitablesoil pollution
equitablenesssolar energy
equitysolar power
elderlyspecial populations
electric vehiclestem cell or fetal tissue research
energy conversionstereotype
enhance the diversitystereotypes
enhancing diversitysubsidized housing
environmental justicesustainable construction
environmental qualitysystemic
equal opportunitythey/them
equalitytile drainage
equitabletopics of federal investigations
equitablenesstopics that have received recent attention from Congress
equitytopics that have received widespread or critical media attention
ethanoltrans
ethnicitytransgender
evidence-basedtransitional housing
excludedtransexual
exclusiontrauma
expressiontraumatic
femaletribal
femalestwo-spirit
feminismunconscious bias
fetusunder appreciated
field drainageunderprivileged
fluorideunder represented
fostering inclusivityunderrepresentation
fuel cellunderrepresented
GBVunderserved
gayunder served
genderunderstudied
gender basedundervalued
gender based violencevaccines
gender diversityvictim
gender identityvictims
gender ideologyvulnerable
gender-affirming carevulnerable populations
genderedwater collection
genderswater conservation
geothermalwater distribution
GHG emissionwater efficiency
GHG monitoringwater management
GHG modelingwater pollution
global warmingwater storage
green
green infrastructurewater treatment
greenhouse gas emissionwater quality
groundwater pollutionwind power
Gulf of Mexicowoman
H5N1/bird fluwomen
hatewomen and underrepresented
hate speech
health disparity
health equity
hispanic
hispanic minority
historically
housing affordability
housing efficiency
hydrogen vehicle
identity