US Navy Plans To Scrub Harvey Milk’s Name From Ship – Happy Pride!
Just when you thought Pride Month was about honouring our heroes, news out of the US suggests a deeply concerning move. Reports indicate the U.S. Navy is looking to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, a ship named for the groundbreaking openly gay politician and navy veteran. What’s more, other vessels named for civil rights icons are also reportedly on the chopping block.
🚨NEW: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the U.S. Navy to change the name of a ship named after Navy veteran and LGBTQ activist Harvey Milk.
— Protect Kamala Harris ✊ (@DisavowTrump20) June 3, 2025
RETWEET if you stand with the legacy of Harvey Milk against the Trump Administration! pic.twitter.com/fODysiMlGv
A Slap in the Face During Pride?
According to CBS News, which obtained Navy documents, there are proposed timelines for announcing the USNS Harvey Milk’s name change. While a new name hasn’t been floated publicly, the timing is appalling. This news lands squarely in June, the month we commemorate the Stonewall uprising and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community worldwide. It feels like a calculated affront, a deliberate attempt to diminish a figure who means so much to many.
Harvey Milk was a true trailblazer. In 1977, he was one of the first openly gay people elected to public office in the United States, serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
His activism and political career was tragically cut short by assassination in 1978 alongside Mayor George Moscone. The acclaimed film Milk, starring Sean Penn, brought his story to an even wider audience.
🚨BREAKING: SecDef Hegseth Torpedoes LGBT Warship ‘Harvey Milk’ To Kick Off Pride Month in the Military
— Walter Curt (@WCdispatch_) June 3, 2025
Defense chief Pete Hegseth just blew up wokeness in dry-dock.
He ordered Navy boss John Phelan to scrub the USNS Harvey Milk and unveil a new, warrior-focused name aboard… pic.twitter.com/gSSKs3FAjC
Why This Ship Matters
The USNS Harvey Milk, a John Lewis-class replenishment oiler, was christened in 2021. Its naming was seen as a significant moment, a recognition of Milk’s service and a step toward greater inclusivity within the armed forces. This wasn’t just a name on a hull, it was a statement.
Milk himself served in the U.S. Navy from 1952 to 1954. However, like countless others of his generation, his service ended under a cloud of prejudice. Facing a court-martial for his sexuality, then-Lieutenant Junior Grade Milk resigned and received an “Other Than Honorable” discharge in 1954. Decades later, in 2021, the Navy offered to upgrade his discharge, but his nephew, Stuart Milk, chose to keep it as a reminder of the injustices faced by service members. The naming of the ship felt like a posthumous and public correction of that historical wrong.
A Wider Pattern of Erasure?
The documents reportedly show the USNS Harvey Milk isn’t the only vessel under review. Ships named after towering figures such as Thurgood Marshall, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Harriet Tubman, and Cesar Chavez are also on a “recommended list” for renaming.
This move appears to align with directives from the recently confirmed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has instructed the Pentagon to cease events tied to heritage or awareness months, including Pride Month, Black History Month, and Women’s History Month. The rationale? Concerns that such programs “could undermine unity within the ranks” and a desire to realign with “reestablishing the warrior culture.”
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi didn’t mince words, telling CBS News, “The reported decision by the Trump Administration to change the names of the USNS Harvey Milk and other ships in the John Lewis-class is a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.” She added, “this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the ‘warrior’ ethos. Instead, it is a surrender of a fundamental American value.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries labelled the move “an utter abomination in terms of the extreme MAGA Republican effort to continue to erase American history.”
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell stated that 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,” and that decisions would be announced after internal reviews.
Earlier this year, Hegseth directed two Army bases, previously renamed to remove Confederate honours, to revert to their original names, Fort Bragg (now claimed to be after a non-Confederate Bragg) and Fort Benning.
A Rare and Troubling Step
While the Navy has renamed ships for various reasons throughout its history, doing so after a ship has entered service is exceptionally rare. The proposed renaming of the USNS Harvey Milk, especially during Pride Month, sends a chilling message.
At DNA, we believe honouring figures who fought for equality strengthens a nation, it doesn’t weaken it. This reported plan seems less about “warrior ethos” and more about erasing progress. We’ll be watching this story closely.
