The U.S. Navy announced in a memo earlier this month that it will not rename a ship named after a famous American civil rights leader and Navy veteran amid lawmakers’ concerns about a potential change.
In an Aug. 1 memo addressed to Rep. Sam Liccardo, D-Calif., Navy Secretary John Phelan confirmed that the Navy had no plans to rename the Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship Cesar Chavez.
“The names of all future vessels and pre-commissioning units in the ship building pipeline will reflect the Commander-in-Chief’s and SECDEF’s priorities, our Nation’s history and the warrior ethos,” the memo read.
The memo comes after Liccardo and Rep. Gil Cisneros, D-Calif., sent a letter — co-signed by 22 of their congressional colleagues — to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on July 15 expressing their concern over the potential renaming of the vessel.
The lawmakers argued that doing so would waste federal resources and lead to the “wasteful politicizing” of the Defense Department.
“When the Navy named a ship after Cesar Chavez, it recognized that service to our country isn’t limited to the battlefield—it includes a lifelong fight for justice at home,” Liccardo said in a press release at the time. “Renaming the USNS Chavez dishonors his legacy of service, social justice, and leadership.”
The Navy launched the Cesar Chavez on May 5, 2012, and the ship now serves in the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
Cesar Chavez served in the Navy from 1946 to 1948 and was an American farm worker and labor leader who co-founded the United States Farm Workers Union, advocating for farmworkers’ rights.
Liccardo said he viewed the memo from Phelan as a win for the Latino community and for veterans, according to an Aug. 15 press release.
But he voiced concerns over Phelan’s mention of the warrior ethos.
“I welcome a response from Secretary Hegseth on why Bay Area hero and civil rights icon Harvey Milk’s legacy won’t be preserved under the same criteria,” Liccardo said.
Hegseth announced earlier this summer that the Navy had officially changed the name of a fleet replenishment oiler previously named after LGBTQ rights icon and Navy veteran Harvey Milk.
In a video posted on X announcing the oiler’s new name — the Oscar V. Peterson — Hegseth criticized the Biden administration for engaging in political activism.
“We are taking the politics out of ship naming,” Hegseth said in the video.
Riley Ceder is a reporter at Military Times, where he covers breaking news, criminal justice, investigations, and cyber. He previously worked as an investigative practicum student at The Washington Post, where he contributed to the Abused by the Badge investigation.
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