Hegseth Sinks Woke Symbolism: Ship Named After Gay Icon Renamed To Honor War Hero

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Friday announced the Pentagon would rename a Navy ship from a gay icon to a World War II hero who gave his life to keep his ship operational during a major battle.

“I’m pleased to officially announce that the Department of the Navy is renaming the replenishment oil formally known as the USNS Harvey Milk to the USNS Oscar V. Peterson,” Hegseth said. “We are taking the politics out of ship-naming; we’re not renaming the ship to anything political; this is not about political activists, unlike the previous administration.”

“Instead, we’re renaming the ship after a United States Navy Congressional Medal of Honor recipient, as it should be,” he continued. “People want to be proud of the ship they’re sailing in, and so we’re renaming it after a chief, a navy chief, that during the battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942, Chief Watertender Peterson led a repair party on the U.S.S. Neosho. The ship was severely damaged by Japanese dive-bombers and the entire repair party was either killed or severely wounded. Peterson himself was gravely wounded, yet he managed to single-handedly close the bulkhead stop valves, thereby helping to keep the ship operational.”

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Peterson suffered third-degree burns to his face, shoulders, arms, and hands after his actions on May 7, 1942; he died on May 13 at the age of 42 and was buried at sea. Peterson and his wife had two sons.

“In performing his historic actions and heroic actions, Peterson received additional injuries, and burns, which tragically resulted in his death, but his spirit of self-sacrifice and concern for his crewmates was in keeping with the finest traditions of the Navy. And for his heroic actions, Oscar Peterson was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. So I would like to officially welcome the USNS Oscar V. Peterson to the Navy’s Vessel Register,” Hegseth concluded.

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. pic.twitter.com/2ypwAQGdAl

— Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (@SecDef) June 27, 2025

In July 2016, during the Obama administration, U.S. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced he would name John Lewis-class fleet replenishment oilers after prominent civil rights leaders, then named one after Harvey Milk, a gay San Francisco city supervisor who was assassinated along with San Francisco Democratic Mayor George Moscone in November 1978. “Milk’s naval service was utterly unremarkable,” National Review has noted.