DOD to Rename Ship Dedicated to Gay Rights Activist
The USNS Harvey Milk – an oiler ship named after Harvey Milk, a US Navy veteran and civil rights activist – will undergo a name change according to an order from US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The ship name was inaugurated in 2021, and is part of the John Lewis-class of ships dedicated to historical civil rights leaders.
The Department of Defense (DOD) under the current Trump administration has displayed a tendency to remove past Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives and anything that may have connection to them. In early May, Hegseth announced that sex-based preferences will no longer be evaluated in the assessment of applicants for the nation’s Military Service Academies.
Elaborating on this approach with respect to naval ships, Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell said that the DOD under Hegseth “is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief’s priorities, our nation’s history, and the warrior ethos.”
According to documents obtained by CBS News, similarly themed ships may also be renamed. Navy Secretary John Phelan will select a new name for the former USNS Harvey Milk. This name will then be announced by Hegseth and Phelan on the USS Constitution, the oldest ship in use by the Navy
US House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi called the DOD’s decision “shameful,” and an attempt to erase the legacy of “those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.” She also criticized the DOD’s overall direction toward DEI:
“Our military is the most powerful in the world — but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the ‘warrior’ ethos,” Pelosi stated. “Instead, it is a surrender of a fundamental American value: to honor the legacy of those who worked to build a better country.”
