The US Coast Guard on Thursday issued a memo that reclassifies swastikas and nooses as “hate symbols,” in a speedy about-face after dealing with intense scrutiny for a earlier coverage change which downplayed their show as merely “potentially divisive.”
The newest memo expressly prohibits the show of nooses, swastikas or “any symbols or flags co-opted or adopted by hate-based groups as representations of supremacy, racial or religious intolerance, anti-semitism, or any other improper bias.”
It was launched hours after The Washington Post reported that the Coast Guard had permitted a coverage that downgraded the way in which the symbols, that are a few of the most recognizable emblems of racism and antisemitism, had beforehand been categorised.
Since 2023, Coast Guard coverage had stated displaying the symbols “constitutes a potential hate incident.” In the updated policy first reported by The Post on Thursday, and issued by the Coast Guard final week, that language had been modified to referring to these symbols merely as “potentially divisive.” That coverage had been set to take impact in December.
The newest policy, launched yesterday, says: “Divisive or hate symbols and flags are prohibited.” It lists swastikas, nooses and different emblems which were adopted or co-opted by hate teams.
The reversal got here amid heavy criticism that the Coast Guard, a navy department which falls underneath the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, was downplaying the show of insignia which suggest help for a few of the darkest moments in human historical past.
DHS denied it had modified its coverage earlier than the Coast Guard issued the obvious reversal. NCS has reached out to the company and department for remark.
Nooses symbolize the legacy of racial hatred and terror within the United States that noticed hundreds of Black folks lynched between the tip of the Civil War and the start of the Civil Rights Movement. Swastikas epitomize Adolf Hitler’s murderous regime in Nazi Germany, which killed hundreds of thousands of individuals through the Holocaust and sparked a conflict during which greater than 400,000 American service members — together with about 1,900 who served within the Coast Guard — additionally died.
Rep. Lauren Underwood, an Illinois Democrat, stated she met with the Coast Guard’s appearing commandant, Admiral Kevin Lunday, to specific issues concerning the replace to the coverage. She stated she acquired a dedication from him that the coverage would change and turn into extra restrictive.
“He came by the office and assured us that there is an across-the-board prohibition on hate symbols, including swastikas and nooses,” Underwood stated in a video statement.
The navy at occasions has struggled with combatting extremism amongst their service members. A 2020 Pentagon report discovered that extremist views weren’t widespread within the navy, however stated the difficulty was nonetheless pressing because of the potential of individuals with navy expertise to hold out “high-impact events.”
During President Joe Biden’s time period, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in 2021 ordered a staggered pause in operations throughout the navy so commanders may have discussions with their service members concerning the subject of extremism.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has dismissed the concept of there being a difficulty with extremism within the navy. During his confirmation hearing in January, Hegseth stated a deal with extremism has “created a climate inside our ranks that feel political when it hasn’t ever been political.”