A move by US defence secretary Pete Hegseth to strip the USNS Harvey Milk of its name during Pride month has been branded “shameful” but leading Democrat Nancy Pelosi.
The US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, reportedly ordered the Unites States navy to strip the name of Harvey Milk – a prominent gay rights activist and navy veteran – from a ship, in the middle of Pride month.
The USNS Harvey Milk, which is a fleet replenishment oiler, was named after the activist in 2016 during the Obama administration; it launched in 2021. According to CBS and Military.com, the orders to rename “multiple” Naval ships were contained in a memo that had “intentional” timing.
Military.com reportedly reviewed this memo from the Office of the Secretary of the Navy (the official who holds the power to name Navy ships) that “showed the sea service had come up with rollout plans for the renaming of the oiler ship USNS Harvey Milk.”
A defense official reportedly confirmed to Military.com that the Navy was making preparations to strip the ship of its name as ordered, but noted that Navy Secretary John Phelan was ordered to do so by Hegseth. The official also said that the timing of the announcement “was intentional.”
The plans to rename the ship will reportedly be made public 13 June, according to the memo. A quote from the note reportedly details the renaming of the Harvey Milk ship so that there is “alignment with president and SECDEF objectives and SECNAV priorities of reestablishing the warrior culture.”
Speaker and Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi has slammed the plans, calling them “shameful” and “vindictive” in a statement.
“The reported decision by the Trump Administration to change the names of the USNS Harvey Milk and other[s] … is a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.
“Our military is the most powerful in the world – but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the “warrior” ethos. Instead, it is a surrender of a fundamental American value: to honor the legacy of those who worked to build a better country,” she said.
“As the rest of us are celebrating the joy of Pride Month, it is my hope that the Navy will reconsider this egregious decision and continue to recognize the extraordinary contributions of Harvey Milk, a Veteran himself, and all Americans who forged historic progress for our nation.”
Milk joined the US Navy during the Korean War, but resigned in 1955, forced to accept an ‘other than honorable’ discharge due to his sexuality.
He went on to start a political career as well as being a gay rights activist; he was the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California in 1977.
Milk was killed in office in 1978; he had just passed a bill banning discrimination in housing and employment based on sexual orientation.
In addition to renaming the USNS Harvey Milk, the defense department plans to rename other vessels that have been given names of various icons throughout American history.
Documents reviewed by CBS showed that vessels on the US navy’s “recommended list” include USNS Thurgood Marshall, USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg, USNS Harriet Tubman, USNS Dolores Huerta, USNS Lucy Stone, USNS Cesar Chavez and USNS Medgar Evers.
PinkNews has contacted the US Navy for comment.
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