Latest news with #HarveyMilk
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
U.S. Navy ship renamed to honor Oscar V. Peterson
The U.S. Naval ship previously named after Harvey Milk will be renamed Oscar V. Peterson, a World War II hero, as announced by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
San Francisco Chronicle
9 hours ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Harvey Milk name erased from Navy ship during Pride Month
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that the U.S. Navy has renamed a ship honoring slain gay rights icon Harvey Milk, replacing it with the name of a World War II hero. The decision, which critics called politically motivated and timed to Pride Month, marks a stark reversal in the Navy's recent approach to commemorating civil rights leaders. The fleet oiler, formerly known as the USNS Harvey Milk, will now bear the name of Oscar V. Peterson, a Medal of Honor recipient who died saving his ship, the USS Neosho, during a 1942 Japanese attack. 'We are taking the politics out of ship naming,' Hegseth said in a video posted to X. 'People want to be proud of the ship they're sailing in.' I am pleased to announce that the United States Navy is renaming the USNS Harvey Milk to the USNS Oscar V. Peterson. We are taking the politics out of ship naming. — Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (@SecDef) June 27, 2025 The ship was christened in 2021 under a policy from the Obama-era Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to name oilers after civil and human rights champions. Milk, a Navy veteran who was forced to accept an 'other than honorable' discharge due to his sexuality, later became one of the first openly gay elected officials in the U.S. before his assassination in 1978. An internal Navy memo revealed that the renaming aligns with President Donald Trump's and Hegseth's goals to 're-establish the warrior culture.' The timing — days after WorldPride celebrations in Washington, D.C. — has drawn intense backlash. 'The removal of Harvey Milk's name from a naval vessel — during Pride Month, no less — is absolutely shameful,' state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said in a statement when the news of the name change first emerged this month. 'Brave LGBTQ veterans worked for years to achieve the naming of a ship for Harvey. Now Trump and Hegseth are wiping it away due to straight-up bigotry.' The USNS Harvey Milk is one of 17 vessels built to honor civil rights heroes, including civil rights activist Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.; Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy; women's rights activist Lucy Stone and abolitionist Sojourner Truth. 'Donald Trump's assault on veterans has hit a new low.' California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted on social media this month. 'Harvey Milk wasn't just a civil rights icon — he was a Korean War combat veteran whose commander called him 'outstanding.' Stripping his name from a Navy ship won't erase his legacy as an American icon, but it does reveal Trump's contempt for the very values our veterans fight to protect.'
Washington Post
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Tracking Trump: Supreme Court limits nationwide injunctions; Trump calls off Canada trade talks; Gavin Newsom sues Fox; and more
The Supreme Court limited nationwide injunctions from lower courts. Trump called off trade talks with Canada. The defense secretary ordered the renaming of the USNS Harvey Milk. California's Democratic governor sued Fox News. The Trump administration is accepting more White Afrikaner refugees. A university president announced his resignation amid Justice Department pressure. A mysterious anti-Trump statue appeared on the National Mall. Before you go … Iran almost assassinated former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and plotted against other Trump allies and the president himself, a forthcoming book by current and former Post reporters reveals. Those threats dramatically changed the Trump team's worldview. Want to stay on top of President Trump's second term? Sign up for the newsletter to get the top stories every weeknight.
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hegseth renames USNS Harvey Milk during Pride Week, claims move isn't political
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that a U.S. Navy ship previously named after LGBTQ rights hero Harvey Milk will be renamed the USNS Oscar V. Peterson — a move he said was aimed at 'taking the politics out of ship-naming,' despite unveiling the decision just ahead of Pride Weekend. 'We're not renaming the ship to anything political,' Hegseth said in a video shared on social media. 'This is not about political activists — unlike the previous administration.' Milk, who served in the Navy during the Korean War, was forced to resign at the rank of lieutenant junior grade in 1955 after being questioned about his sexual orientation. He later made history as California's first openly gay elected official when he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1977. He was assassinated inside City Hall the following year, just months after helping pass a landmark bill banning discrimination on sexual orientation in housing and employment. In 2016, the U.S. Navy announced it would name a ship after Milk. Construction began in late 2019, and two years later, Navy veteran Paula Neira christened the USNS Harvey Milk (T-AO 206) during a ceremony in San Diego Bay attended by state and local leaders. Oscar V. Peterson, the ship's new namesake, was a World War II watertender who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism during a 1942 Japanese attack on the USS Neosho in the Battle of the Coral Sea. A Navy escort ship named after him was decommissioned in 1965 after more than two decades of service. Earlier this month, after reports emerged that Hegseth had ordered Navy Secretary John Phelan to put together a team to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi slammed the move as a 'shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.' _____
Fox News
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Hegseth announces Navy oil tanker named after gay rights leader renamed after Medal of Honor recipient
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a Navy oil tanker named after gay rights leader Harvey Milk will be renamed after Medal of Honor recipient Oscar V. Peterson. "We are taking the politics out of ship naming," he wrote on X along with a video announcing the move. Milk was California's first openly gay politician, who was shot and killed inside San Francisco city hall by former San Francisco supervisor Dan White. The ship, a fleet replenishment oiler, was originally named after him in 2016 under President Barack Obama. He served four years in the Navy in the Korean War but left due to his sexuality. Peterson was awarded the Medal of Honor after his death, having died of his wounds during battle in World War II in an act of self-sacrifice that saved lives. "People want to be proud of the ship they're sailing in," Hegseth said of the change. "We're not renaming the ship to anything political. This is not about political activists, unlike the previous administration." Peterson, who spent 20 years in the Navy, was in charge of running the steam engine in the U.S.S. Neosho when it came under Japanese fire in the Philippines in 1942. On May 7, 1942, the Neosho was severely damaged during the Battle of the Coral Sea. Peterson and other members of his repair party were badly injured, but Peterson managed to close four bulkhead steam valves. He sustained third-degree burns in the process, but the move kept the ship afloat. On May 11, the U.S.S. Henley rescued 123 survivors from the Neosho, and Peterson died two days later from his wounds. The renaming comes amid a push from Hegseth to remove DEI and "woke" policies from the Department of Defense. When the move was first reported earlier this month, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called the move a "shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream." "As the rest of us are celebrating the joy of Pride Month, it is my hope that the Navy will reconsider this egregious decision," Pelosi said in a statement.
