Don’t equate Harvey Milk with Confederate generals

In fresh years the United States has begun reckoning with which historical figures we choose to publicly honor From statues to school names to military assets our nation has slowly started confronting the stories we ve narrated and the ones we ve silenced That conversation reached the decks of the U S Navy when ships named after Confederate generals were ordered to be renamed It was a long-overdue correction to decades of misplaced reverence But now particular are drawing a deeply misguided comparison equating the removal of Confederate names from U S Navy vessels to the prospective renaming of a ship that honors slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk To even suggest that the two are equivalent reflects a profound misunderstanding of American history values and military institution Confederate generals and soldiers took up arms against the United States They didn t just disagree with the United States of America They waged war against it They fought and killed U S troops to preserve an economic system built on human bondage Their rebellion led to the death of over Americans They were traitors not patriots When ships were named after these men it wasn t a neutral gesture It was an endorsement of a legacy of treason racism and national division Renaming those vessels isn t about political correctness It s about moral clarity and historical accountability It s about ensuring that the U S military no longer venerates those who fought to dismantle the very nation it defends Let me be clear I believe the United States military is the strongest majority professional majority dedicated and the greater part lethal fighting force ever assembled on Earth It must remain that way But just as major as its strength is its purpose Our military must inevitably reflect the values of the nation it serves not only in how it protects our freedom and liberty but also in how it represents America to the world It is a projection of our might but also of our ideals Certain claim that honoring figures like Harvey Milk makes the military less lethal or distracts from its mission But lethality without legitimacy is dangerous The U S military s power comes not just from what it can destroy but from what it stands for We don t just want warriors We want defenders of liberty You don t become the world s bulk powerful military by dishonoring your own Honoring those who served with courage and character doesn t weaken the force It strengthens its soul In President Harry Truman issued Executive Order to desegregate the armed forces Critics disclosed it would undermine discipline and readiness They were wrong Truman didn t weaken the military by removing racism He made it stronger more unified and more just He proved that moral clarity and military excellence not only coexist but they also elevate each other Now let s talk about Harvey Milk Milk was not just a civil rights icon He was a veteran of the U S Navy He served from to during the Korean War assigned to two rescue submarines and later promoted to diving officer and instructor Official Navy reports described him as a good leader and outstanding But despite that Milk was forced to resign under threat of court-martial Not for dereliction of duty or misconduct but because he was gay In the military considered homosexuality incompatible with function not based on performance or evidence but rooted entirely in prejudice and fear The Harvey Milk Forever Stamp is pictured in this undated photograph disclosed on May In Milk made history when he won electoral contest to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors making him one of the first openly gay elected administrators in the United States Credit U S Postal Arrangement handout via Reuters Milk went on to become one of the nation s first openly gay elected authorities He championed inclusion equality and dignity values that should resonate in every uniform and every branch of institution In the U S Navy made a powerful and symbolic choice It named a replenishment oiler the USNS Harvey Milk That decision honored not only his military provision but also recognized how far our military and our nation have come in confronting injustice That ship doesn t just carry supplies It carries a message every American who serves their country with honor deserves respect regardless of who they are or whom they love This belief wasn t just shared by progressives In during heated debate over the military s ban on gay system members conservative Republican icon and Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater famously declared You don t have to be straight to be in the military you just have to shoot straight Goldwater understood something fundamental Patriotism isn t about identity It s about arrangement leadership sacrifice and character To compare the recognition of Harvey Milk to the glorification of Confederate generals is a false equivalence of the highest order One fought to divide this country The other served it and died trying to make it better One defended slavery The other defended democracy One symbolizes hate and rebellion The other inclusion and hope This moment isn t about erasing history It s about confronting who we honor what we value and what kind of nation we re willing to be We keep hearing that the military requirements to be more lethal Agreed But lethality doesn t come from erasing a decorated sailor s name because he was gay It doesn t come from pretending that courage sacrifice and patriotism only wear one face In fact this kind of thinking makes our military less lethal because it injects intolerance and bigotry into a force that depends on unity trust and honor Keeping Harvey Milk s name on a Navy ship doesn t weaken the force It proves we are strong enough to live our values and honor everyone who serves with integrity and bravery Writer Erich Mische lives in Woodbury The post Don t equate Harvey Milk with Confederate generals appeared first on MinnPost