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Pentagon chief directs Navy to rename ship honoring Harvey Milk

Scheduled for June 13, the move reinforces a warrior-ethos initiative during Pride Month

The John Lewis-class replenishment oiler USNS Harvey Milk (T-AO-206) conducts a replenishment at sea with the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), December 13, 2024.
A lifelike model of gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk is seen on a parade float in a gay pride parade in San Francisco, California June 28, 2015. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage/File Photo
Crewmembers of Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force guided missile destroyer JS Shimakaze hold a U.S. flag towards the U.S. Navy oiler USNS Harvey Milk during an exercise in the Virginia Capes’ (VACAPES) operating area in the Atlantic Ocean, September 24, 2024. LaShawn Sykes/U.S. Navy/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo
Crewmembers of Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force training vessel JS Kashima wave towards the U.S. Navy oiler USNS Harvey Milk during an exercise in the Virginia Capes’ (VACAPES) operating area in the Atlantic Ocean, September 24, 2024. LaShawn Sykes/U.S. Navy/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

Overview

  • Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered Navy Secretary John Phelan to strip the USNS Harvey Milk of its name, with the change to be announced on June 13.
  • The memorandum cites alignment with Trump-era and SECDEF priorities to reestablish a warrior culture through updated naming conventions.
  • Commissioned in 2021, the USNS Harvey Milk is a John Lewis-class replenishment oiler named for the slain gay-rights activist and Navy veteran.
  • Other John Lewis-class vessels honoring civil-rights leaders, including those named for Thurgood Marshall and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, are under consideration for renaming.
  • Renaming a commissioned ship is exceptionally rare; the Navy last made a post-service name change in 2023 to remove Confederate-linked titles.