U.S. Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX) and several other members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) have expressed opposition to any efforts to revert the name of Fort Cavazos back to Fort Hood, emphasizing the importance of honoring Gen. Richard E. Cavazos, the Army’s first Hispanic four-star general.
Fort Cavazos, located in Killeen, Texas, was renamed in May 2023 to honor Texas-born Cavazos, a Korean and Vietnam War hero. It was one of nine military bases that were renamed following a congressional commission’s recommendation to remove Confederate names from military installations in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement. The effort to rename the nine bases reportedly cost $39 million.
The previous name, Fort Hood, commemorated Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood. The CHC played a role in recommending that Fort Hood be renamed in honor of Cavazos.
President Trump and his administration have expressed an interest in restoring the original names of some of these bases. During an October 2024 town hall meeting in Fayetteville, North Carolina, during his presidential campaign, Trump said he would change the name of the nearby military base, Fort Liberty, back to Fort Bragg.
In February of this year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memorandum to change the name of Fort Liberty back to Fort Bragg. However, the base is now named in honor of PFC Roland L. Bragg, a WWII veteran and Silver Star and Purple Heart recipient, instead of Confederate General Braxton Bragg.
“It’s a shame what was done to vets, service members, [and] their families who were born there, deployed out of there with airborne troops here, some of which spent 25 years at Fort Bragg, and never called it Fort Liberty, because it wasn’t Fort Liberty. It’s Fort Bragg,” Hegseth said. “It’s about that legacy. It’s about the connection to the community, to those who served. And we’re not, as the President has said, and I’ve said as well, we’re not done there. There are other bases that have been renamed that erode that very same legacy.”
Although Fort Cavazos has not been specifically identified as one of the bases that the Trump administration wants to rename, Castro and other members of the CHC are taking proactive steps to make sure that does not happen.
Castro and eight other CHC representatives signed a letter addressed to Hegseth urging him to “ensure that Fort Cavazos continues to bear the name of this distinguished American hero.”