Latest news with #USNSHarveyMilk
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Milk' screenwriter Dustin Lance Black: Respond to ship renaming order by building coalitions
Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of the 2008 Harvey Milk biopic Milk, says the best way for LGBTQ+ people to react to the Trump administration's order to take Milk's name off a Navy ship is to build coalitions with other marginalized people. Keep up with the latest in + news and politics. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the renaming of the USNS Harvey Milk and directed the Navy to consider renaming the other ships planned for its class, all named for civil rights icons, such as Thurgood Marshall, a crusading lawyer and the first Black U.S. Supreme Court justice; another justice, women's and LGBTQ+ rights champion Ruth Bader Ginsburg; labor leaders Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta; and abolitionists Sojourner Truth and Harriet Tubman. 'This is one of the oldest plays in the playbook … if they divide, they'll conquer,' Black said Sunday on MSNBC's The Weekend. 'If gay people want to react to this the way Harvey Milk would say to react to this is to understand Harvey's gonna be an icon no matter what Pete does. Now it's time to do what Harvey said to do. He said this is not about ego. … This is about the 'us-es' coming together.' 'He didn't mean just LGBTQ folks,' Black said of Milk, the first out gay person elected to public office in California — a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, serving just a year before his assassination in 1978. 'He was talking about the people who he worked for, who he fought so hard for, like seniors in San Francisco who couldn't afford to live in the home that they had grown up in. About union workers who supported Harvey because Harvey had boycotted Coors beer so union workers could have a living wage to raise their kids. For the folks in Chinatown, he said, let's get those ballots in Mandarin so your vote counts.' - YouTube 'Those of us who feel and know we are treated differently under the law for who we are, we have to come together, we cannot become myopic, we cannot simply focus on our own needs, we have to lock arms and build those coalitions, and sadly right now we find ourselves in a similar position to where we were back in Harvey's time, when those coalitions were fractured,' he added. It's our work not to fall for this nonsense. It's our work right now to lock arms. So if you're a gay person who's pissed off by this, in Pride Month here in Los Angeles, get out on the streets and stand up for our brothers and sisters who are suffering in the Latino community up here right now. Do that. Show up for our brothers and sisters, not just thinking about ourselves. That's what Harvey would do.' Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Budd of North Carolina, who blocked Democratic colleague Adam Schiff's resolution to urge the reversing of the renaming order, claimed the way the ships were named broke with Navy tradition. Budd was 'ill informed, I think at best,' or was 'peddling misinformation,' Black said. Related: Before becoming a politician and activist in San Francisco, Milk served in the Navy and was forced to resign for being gay. He also worked on Wall Street and as a Broadway production associate. Milk excelled in the Navy, as he did at everything he set his mind to, Black noted. He was also among 'countless LGBTQ people who served proudly,' the writer said. Black's mother and stepfather were both in the military, so he grew up around people who had to serve in the closet, he pointed out. 'What it's time for is to recognize that,' he concluded. Last week, Black and Sean Penn, who played Milk in the movie and won the Best Actor Oscar, had blasted Hegseth's order in interviews with The Hollywood Reporter. 'This is yet another move to distract and to fuel the culture wars that create division,' Black told the publication. 'It's meant to get us to react in ways that are self-centered so that we are further distanced from our brothers and sisters in equally important civil rights fights in this country. It's divide and conquer.' Penn emailed the Reporter, saying, 'I've never before seen a Secretary of Defense so aggressively demote himself to the rank of Chief PETTY Officer.' Black added, 'Pete Hegseth does not seem like a smart man, a wise man, a knowledgeable man. He seems small and petty. I would love to introduce him to some LGBTQ folks who are warriors who have had to be warriors our entire life just to live our lives openly as who we are.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Effort to rename Navy ships honoring minority, gay leaders is wrong
Nothing spells homophobia and discrimination like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's order to the Navy on Tuesday to review the names of ships honoring Harvey Milk – one of the country's first openly gay elected officials – and other prominent civil rights leaders. That his demand was made at the dawn of Pride Month is a slap at the LGBTQ+ community. 'Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all (Department of Defense) installations and assets are reflective of the commander in chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos,' the Pentagon said in a statement. The story was first reported by which said the renaming of the USNS Harvey Milk, an oiler ship, was scheduled to be made June 13. The timing during Pride Month was intentional, the site said. If Milk – who served in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War aboard a submarine rescue ship – does not fit the warrior ethos, then we are living under the wrong leadership. The USNS Harvey Milk was launched in November 2021 after a 2016 decision by Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus to name all John Lewis-class oilers after civil rights leaders. Milk, who was assassinated while in office in 1978, is an icon in the LGBTQ+ community. At a Friday morning raising of the Pride flag at Fresno City Hall, four individuals or their organizations were honored with the Harvey Milk Community Leader Award. The condemnations of the Trump administration's efforts to erase the memories of big swaths of Americans were quick. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Milk was more than 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.' Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, nailed it on X (formerly Twitter): 'Our military is the most powerful in the world – but this spiteful move does not strengthen our national security or the 'warrior' ethos. It is a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.' It's time that Trump and his cronies realize that this great country has been built by generations of immigrants and people from all walks of life, religion and gender identity. They won wars, built cities, sacrificed for their families and inspired the innovation that continues to bless our nation. Hegseth's efforts to downplay their contributions reflects his weakness as a human being. It also reveals his racism and sexism. The names of the first Black Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and civil rights leader Medgar Evers are among the names the defense secretary wants banished. It's not as if minorities are absent in the military. According to the Navy, 38.4% of its service members are from minority communities. That includes Latinos (18.3%) and Blacks (17.2%). Milk, Marshall, Evers and others have served their country with distinction. Their service to this country was just as valuable as any other individual's. They represented not only their community but also their country. Others on the list include Underground Railroad figure Harriet Tubman, suffragist/abolitionist Lucy Stone and United Farm Workers co-founders César E. Chávez and Dolores Huerta. Some ships with their names have yet to be constructed, like the one for Huerta, who at 95 years of age remains active. The USNS Cesar Chavez was launched in 2012 in honor of the labor leader who died in 1993. He was 17 when he joined the Navy during World War II and served for two years. The USNS Dolores Huerta, a future John Lewis-class oiler, was named in 2024 by Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro. 'Dolores Huerta has been a leading figure in the Hispanic community and a champion of civil and workers' rights for over 70 years,' said Del Toro in announcing the name. 'Dolores Huerta dedicated her life to caring for those voiceless and underrepresented – she dedicated her life to taking care of people.' If you search the Defense Department's website and search for 'warrior ethos,' you'll get 98 replies. Unfortunately, rallying service members by yelling 'warrior ethos' at the same time you're diminishing the service of minority Americans doesn't make you a warrior. It just shows how pathetic and racist you can be. Shame on Hegseth. He shows no pride in the men and women under his command.
Toronto Sun
2 days ago
- General
- Toronto Sun
SHAPIRO: Team Trump restoring a warrior mentality in the military once again
In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, the John Lewis-class replenishment oiler USNS Harvey Milk (T-AO-206) conducts a replenishment at sea in the Atlantic Ocean, Dec. 13, 2024. Photo by Maxwell Orlosky / AP This week, the U.S. Department of Defence made an unprecedented move by renaming a ship originally christened the USNS Harvey Milk. According to Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth's memo, the goal was to ensure 'alignment with president and SECDEF objectives and SECNAV priorities of re-establishing the warrior culture.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account And predictably, the radical left went insane. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, whose district encompasses San Francisco — the home of Harvey Milk — called it 'a surrender of a fundamental American value to honour the legacy of those who worked to build a better country … a shameful, vindictive erasure of those who fought to break down barriers for all to chase the American Dream.' Part of this supposed legacy was the creation in 2018 of the John Lewis-class replenishment oilers, designated to be named after various civil rights leaders, including Harriet Tubman, Thurgood Marshall and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But this idea is rather stupid in the first place. First off, these figures are not exactly anonymous. There are currently two public schools named after Milk (one in San Francisco and one in New York), even though he was a scurrilous figure who had sex with a 16-year-old runaway while he was in his 30s and rather prominently supported murderous cult leader Jim Jones. A film was made about his life, starring Sean Penn, who won an Oscar for his performance. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Traditionally, U.S. Navy ships have been named after places (USS Ohio) or presidents (USS Ronald Reagan) or military heroes (USS John Paul Jones) or ideas (USS Enterprise or USS Hope) or even Native American tribes (USS Seminole). The reason for these naming conventions is obvious— they are not polarizing. If you name a ship after John F. Kennedy or Doris Miller, you're not offending anyone; we can all acknowledge JFK's presidency and Doris Miller's Second World War heroism. But that's not what happened with the USS Harvey Milk. When the name was announced, radical state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-Calif., explained, 'When Harvey Milk served in the military, he couldn't tell anyone who he truly was. Now our country is telling the men and women who serve, and the entire world, that we honour and support people for who they are.' That, of course, is a strange proposition for the United States military, which is fundamentally not about honouring people for 'who they are' but for what they do— and given that the topic is ship-naming, what they do ought to be at least tangentially related to the question of military readiness. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The Trump administration's renaming is part and parcel of a broader shift away from the censorious wokeness that crippled military recruitment and led to an astonishing diminishment in the perception of our military strength. It turns out that young men don't want to join a military that is more focused on cultural signalling than lethal efficiency — and our enemies are far more sanguine about a military that focuses on which interest groups to placate than a military that focuses on victorious deadliness. Hegseth, in short, is right. If the purpose of branding is to establish a vision of the thing being branded, we are far better off with a USNS Daniel Daly — a ship named after one of the most decorated Marines in American history — than with a USNS Harvey Milk. What's more, the Trump administration's refreshing willingness to say the obvious is a credit to the White House and the Secretary of Defence. No, our military ought not be a canvas for the latest social revolutionary fad. We don't need a USNS RuPaul. We need an America united by our reverence for our citizen warriors, which means honouring the universal icons who remind us of their bravery and sacrifice. Ben Shapiro is host of The Ben Shapiro Show and co-founder of Daily Wire+ Sports World Canada Sunshine Girls Columnists
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Retired Navy admiral criticizes Hegseth over Harvey Milk ship renaming
Retired Adm. James Stavridis said he doesn't agree with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's decision to rename the USNS Harvey, removing the commemoration of gay rights activist Harvey Milk. Milk, a former service member, served as a political official in California and championed rights for the local LGBTQ community before he was assassinated. 'I am scratching my head about renaming the USS — USNS, to be accurate — Harvey Milk, because Harvey Milk was gay. We all know that. But today, gay sailors serve openly and with a great deal of pride in the U.S. military,' the former supreme allied commander of NATO said during a Friday episode of 'The Michael Smerconish Program.' He noted that past military leaders have been both gay and successful at accomplishing their mission while serving. 'I know many who are gay and are very competent war-fighting sailors. So when the secretary of Defense says, 'Hey, I'm renaming this in order to restore the warrior ethos,' I just don't get that at all,' Stavridis said. 'There have been gay soldiers in militaries going back centuries. I'm Greek American. Arguably the greatest general in history, Alexander the Great was gay and, oh, by the way, people serving at the highest level of the U.S. Cabinet today, like secretary of the Treasury, who I think is doing a pretty good job with a tough hand of cards, [Scott] Bessent, is openly gay.' Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is the second openly gay man to serve in a Cabinet position. He hasn't commented on the Trump administration's efforts to remove aspects of gender identity from the military branch. Stavridis, however, said the potential ship renaming is uncanny, especially during a month established to celebrate gay rights. 'I don't get it on why we need to rename this ship this moment and also to do it during Pride Month. … I don't agree with it,' he said. Reports emerged Wednesday alleging that Hegseth has ordered the oil fleet to lose its name. However, officials have yet to make a public announcement confirming the move. 'Secretary Hegseth is committed to ensuring that the names attached to all DOD [Department of Defense] installations and assets are reflective of the Commander-in-Chief's priorities, our nation's history, and the warrior ethos,' chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement to The Hill when asked about potential renaming. 'Any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete.' USNS Harvey Milk was a part of the John Lewis class of oil replenishment ships, which touts the names of other civil rights leaders including Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Harriet Tubman. Officials are also considering removing their names, according to reports from CBS. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
American Military News
4 days ago
- Politics
- American Military News
SECDEF Hegseth orders Navy to rename ship named after gay rights activist: Report
A new report claims that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has ordered the U.S. Navy to change the name of an oiler ship named after Harvey Milk, who was a gay rights activist. was the first outlet to report the anticipated name change for the U.S. Navy's ship after reviewing a memorandum from the Office of the Secretary of the Navy. An anonymous defense official told that the Navy was preparing to change the name of the USNS Harvey Milk and confirmed Navy Secretary John Phelan had received an order from Hegseth to change the ship's name. The defense official added that the timing of the name change was intentional during Pride month, which is celebrated each year in June. According to the memorandum obtained by the USNS Harvey Milk's name change is part of the 'alignment with president and SECDEF objectives and SECNAV priorities of reestablishing the warrior culture.' The outlet noted that the memorandum indicated that the announcement of the Navy's plan to change the name of the USNS Harvey Milk was expected to become public on June 13. According to CBS News, the USNS Harvey Milk was named after the gay rights activist in August of 2016 at a ceremony in San Francisco under former President Barack Obama's administration. The outlet noted that Milk was the first openly gay official to be elected to office in California prior to his assassination in 1978. READ MORE: Video/Pic: SECDEF Hegseth restores 'Fort Liberty' to 'Fort Bragg' The Harvey Milk Foundation's website describes Milk as a 'visionary civil and human rights leader who became one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States.' The website notes that Milk enlisted in the Navy in 1951 and resigned in 1955 after he was 'officially questioned about his sexual orientation.' In a statement to Fox News, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Sean Parnell did not directly address the report regarding the renaming of the USNS Harvey Milk; however, he suggested that the Pentagon could implement additional name changes in the future. Parnell told Fox News, 'Secretary 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.' He added that 'any potential renaming(s) will be announced after internal reviews are complete.' According to documents obtained by CBS News, the Navy has a 'recommended list' of other ship name changes, including the USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the USNS Thurgood Marshall, the USNS Lucy Stone, the USNS Harriet Tubman, the USNS Medgar Evers, the USNS Dolores Huerta, and the USNS Cesar Chavez.
