The drag queen hired as a “digital ambassador” for the United States Navy lashed out at critics who have slammed the Navy for using him in a bid to shore up sagging recruiting numbers.
Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, aka “Harpy Daniels,” posted a TikTok video in which he showed a tweet from podcaster Graham Allen, who tweeted: “This is not the same military I served under. Our enemies LAUGH at us.” Allen also showed Kelley in his different drag outfits.
This is not the same military I served under…
Our enemies LAUGH at us. pic.twitter.com/XPa8ta7Q1p
— Graham Allen (@GrahamAllen_1) May 2, 2023
“Basically, just, you know, D-G-A-F,” Kelley said.
“You want to tear down service members and use my content without a tag so you don’t look homophobic or transphobic,” Kelley wrote to Allen on Instagram. “You only want to support the military when it benefits you and doesn’t involve queer people. Yet the military is the largest diverse and adaptable organization in use.”
“You don’t actually care, you just need more followers, more content and more people to praise someone who only creates toxic environments and hate,” Kelley charged. “You don’t care if I get death threats, people wanting to harm me or spread disinformation. You only want the spotlight.”
“Well, as a service member, a queen and an open queer person, you don’t scare me and you won’t stop the LGBTQ+ community [from] thriving,” Kelley continued. “Haters only hate when we’re winning.”
Former U.S. Navy Seal Robert O’Neill, credited with firing the shot that killed Osama bin Laden in 2011, expressed his fury over the U.S. Navy using a drag queen to advocate for Navy recruits.
“Alright. The U.S. Navy is now using an enlisted sailor Drag Queen as a recruiter. I’m done,” Robert O’Neill, who said that he fired the shot that killed bin Laden in 2011, tweeted. “China is going to destroy us. YOU GOT THIS NAVY. I can’t believe I fought for this bulls***.”
“You’re doing it wrong, @USNavy,” he added. “Talk to someone [who’s] actually done something! Not yeomen with t*** and a D***!”
Kelley, 29, who identifies as “non-binary,” became one of five Navy “Digital Ambassadors” in a pilot recruitment program that lasted from October to March.
“From joining to 2016 and being able to share my drag experience on my off time with my fellow sailors has been a blessing,” Kelley wrote on Instagram in November. “This experience has brought me so much strength, courage and ambition to continue being an advocate and representation of queer sailors! Thank you to the Navy for giving me this opportunity! I don’t speak for the Navy but simply sharing my experience in the Navy! Hooyah, and let’s go Slay!”
Mairead Elordi contributed to this article.