Navy to name aircraft carrier for Pearl Harbor hero Dorie Miller

[rangerrebew]

Navy to name aircraft carrier for Pearl Harbor hero Dorie Miller

Sailor rescued wounded, manned antiaircraft gun during Japanese attack
 
By Mike Glenn - The Washington Times - Saturday, January 18, 2020

One of the first U.S. heroes of World War II will be the namesake of one of America’s latest nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.

On Monday, the Navy is expected to formally announce its decision to name a Ford-class aircraft carrier after Mess Attendant 2nd Class Doris “Dorie” Miller. He will be the first African-American to have an aircraft carrier named in his honor.

Petty Officer Miller also was the first African-American to receive the Navy Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor, for his heroic actions during the Dec. 7, 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor while he was assigned to the U.S.S. West Virginia, a battleship.

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/jan/18/navy-name-aircraft-carrier-doris-dorie-miller-pear/

[rangerrebew]

This is a good choice.  Certainly light years better than the Harvey Milk!

[Smokin Joe]

This is a good choice.  Certainly light years better than the Harvey Milk!

[Bigun]

This is a good choice.  Certainly light years better than the Harvey Milk!

  Or John S. McCain

[PeteS in CA]

Or John S. McCain

John S. McCain Sr. was the USN's carrier operations guru during WW2. Well worth honoring.

John S. McCain Jr. commanded the submarine USS Gunnel, fighting with distinction the Japanese, the boat's HOR engines, and the infamous Mark XIV torpedoes (not always in that order; the "whore" engines were the USN's other submarine debacle). He also commanded USS Dentuda in her only war patrol. In the Vietnam era he served as CINC of US Naval Forces, Europe and then CINPAC.

The USS John S. McCain was originally named to honor them, and appropriately so. John S. McCain III was added to them as honorees later.

Naming anything to honor Harvey Milk is a travesty.

[Smokin Joe]

Naming anything to honor Harvey Milk is a travesty.

Yeah, this was bad enough:

Error 404 (Not Found)!!1

[skeeter]

A carrier is a little over the top. The protocol used to be honoring individuals by naming destroyers after them. Lt Michael Murphy had one named for him. Miller has had a frigate named after him.

With carriers it used to be key battles in the nation's history, which is appropriate, then it was the navy's congressional benefactors, naval secretarys & presidents, which are not IMO, now its guys who fired machine guns.

Its ironic Miller is always honored for merely firing a gun on 12/7/41 when he should be remember for giving his life with all the others aboard the USS Liscombe Bay two years later.

[rangerrebew]

The Navy Once Called Him an ‘Unknown Negro Sailor.’ Now it’s Naming a Carrier After Him
 
 
19 Jan 2020
Military.com | By Gina Harkins

Nearly 80 years after the Navy declined to even name the hero black sailor who displayed extraordinary bravery during the attack on Pearl Harbor, the service’s acting secretary is breaking with tradition to name a powerful aircraft carrier in his honor.

The family of Navy Cross recipient Doris “Dorie” Miller said Sunday that acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly’s decision to name a carrier for their uncle is an honor. Having the announcement made on Martin Luther King Jr. Day only makes the situation even more meaningful, Miller’s niece Brenda Haven told CBS Sunday Morning

“That's beautiful,” Haven said, adding, “It has been a long, hard road.”

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/01/19/navy-once-called-him-unknown-negro-sailor-now-its-naming-carrier-after-him.html

[Gefn]

 

[PeteS in CA]

@rangerrebew, I merged the two threads about this you had posted in the Military forum. There's also another about this in the History sub-forum.

[Maj. Bill Martin]

Great choice!

[Maj. Bill Martin]

A carrier is a little over the top. The protocol used to be honoring individuals by naming destroyers after them. Lt Michael Murphy had one named for him. Miller has had a frigate named after him.

With carriers it used to be key battles in the nation's history, which is appropriate, then it was the navy's congressional benefactors, naval secretarys & presidents, which are not IMO, now its guys who fired machine guns.

Its ironic Miller is always honored for merely firing a gun on 12/7/41 when he should be remember for giving his life with all the others aboard the USS Liscombe Bay two years later.

That's a valid point, but I think the symbolism here is useful.  The truth is, the military did treat black Americans like crap for a long time, and so there are a great many black heroes whose stories we will never know because they were buried by history.   The symbolism here is a conscious statement of recognition for that service.  Good thing for black sailors, and honestly for all enlisted sailors.  Every single time that ship sails, the name will be a reminder that the country as a whole truly respects the service of the ordinary enlisted sailor, and that its not just politicians and other bigwigs who deserve that recognition.

I'm a Naval Academy grad, and most of the guys I know really like this choice.

[sneakypete]

Yeah, this was bad enough:

Error 404 (Not Found)!!1

@Smokin Joe

You mean that wasn't a documentary?

Who knew?

[sneakypete]

 now its guys who fired machine guns.

 

@skeeter

No,it's BLACK guys that fired a gun. If Miller hadn't existed,they would have invented him.

[sneakypete]

The Navy Once Called Him an ‘Unknown Negro Sailor.’ Now it’s Naming a Carrier After Him
 

@rangerrebew

I would hardly call someone that earned a Navy Cross in 1941,ESPECIALLY someone black,would be referred to as "Unknown". As I am sure YOU know,the Navy Cross is an industrial-strength hero badge,and the Navy is not fond of handing one out to anyone that isn't an Admiral,or the son of an Admiral.

[skeeter]

@skeeter

No,it's BLACK guys that fired a gun. If Miller hadn't existed,they would have invented him.

Naming a carrier after him is the height of condescension. Probably a great guy, but he didn’t do anything that thousands of guys didn’t do that day.

[sneakypete]

That's a valid point, but I think the symbolism here is useful.

 

Symbolism is NEVER useful because it is,BY DEFINITION,a lie.

The truth is, the military did treat black Americans like crap for a long time,

So what? We also treated Indians,Chinese,Irish,and pretty much everybody else like crap back then,too. Children were worked to death in sweat shops and not sent to school.

and so there are a great many black heroes whose stories we will never know because they were buried by history.

 

Yes,and no. "Yes",because for whatever reason they were never promoted in the press,and back then if it wasn't reported in the newspaper,it didn't happen.

"No",in the sense that some,maybe a small percentage,maybe a large percentage,WERE recognized and rewarded. There was even a black slave that was freed,given a land grant and everything he needed to start a successful farm of his own,as well as he highest medal awarded to the military during the Revolutionary War.

When you consider he was still a slave when he performed his acts of courage,and not even in the military when the highest military award was given to him,that was one HELL of an accomplishment.

The story,from what is left of my memory,is that he was the slave of a senior General,and was captured by the British and tortured on one the British "Prisoner Ships" at anchor in a harbor. The theory was that as the slave of a prominent Rebel General,he may have heard conversations about war plans,and when he denied this,they tortured him to try to determine if he was lying.

The truth is he was a human message carrying orders to coordinate an attack by two different Colonial Generals on a British fort behind enemy lines. He had memorized it all in order to not be caught with written orders. He not only survived the torture without giving up the secret attack plans,he escaped from the prison ship,swam to shore,and then took off on foot and found the General he was to report to,and repeated the orders.

The United States didn't even exist then,but a black man was one of our first heroes. If this story is not known wider,blame the teachers and schools,not our government.

There were also black Confederate soldiers that were heroes,as well as slaves that performed heroic deeds while serving their masters who were in the army,and their deeds were written up and they were also rewarded. Usually when freedom for them and their wives and children,as well as a small farm.

Do NOT hold your breath waiting for the deeds of black Confederate heroes to be taught in our schools today.

There was also an Army unit (regiment?) of black soldiers that fought with the French as infantrymen during WW-1 that had a unknown to me number of soldiers that got valor awards from the French Army,the American army,or both. This SHOULD be taught in the history books in public schools,but isn't.  The FACT is that blacks were not assigned to ground combat units in the US Army until the Korean War because they were thought to be to mentally inferior as well as lacking in courage. Yes,many were wounded and killed during WW-2,but they were in support units like supply,truck drivers,hospital stretcher bearers,etc,etc,etc.

The Tuskegee Airmen were an obvious exception,other than the fact they were in the Army Air Corps,not the Army.  Here we have a mirror image of what was typical treatment of blacks of that period. Do NOT believe all the crap you read about them never having a bomber squadron they flew air cover for having any bombers shot down,etc,etc,etc. The FACT is they were sent on the safer support missions because the brass didn't really trust them,and just like every other fighter support squadron,they DID lose bombers they were protecting. They had no special powers because they were black. They were just men,not Superman,and not Super Fly. Some were great pilots,some were adequate pilots. All were brave or they would have never volunteered for that very dangerous job.

The symbolism here is a conscious statement of recognition for that service.  Good thing for black sailors, and honestly for all enlisted sailors.  Every single time that ship sails, the name will be a reminder that the country as a whole truly respects the service of the ordinary enlisted sailor, and that its not just politicians and other bigwigs who deserve that recognition.

I agree with the point you made,but am sad that his efforts and valor were cheapened by being turned into some sort of PC statement.

AND....,as you pointed out he volunteered to go back aboard another ship and sail off into battle to die,when he could have easily gotten out of it if he had wanted.

You really have to wonder why he isn't better known. There CAN'T be many cooks in the US Navy of ANY color that won a Navy Cross. For any of you reading this who don't know,a Navy Cross is just one step below a Medal of Honor,and USUALLY only given after a Medal of Honor has been considered,but rejected.

[skeeter]

That's a valid point, but I think the symbolism here is useful.  The truth is, the military did treat black Americans like crap for a long time, and so there are a great many black heroes whose stories we will never know because they were buried by history.   The symbolism here is a conscious statement of recognition for that service.  Good thing for black sailors, and honestly for all enlisted sailors.  Every single time that ship sails, the name will be a reminder that the country as a whole truly respects the service of the ordinary enlisted sailor, and that its not just politicians and other bigwigs who deserve that recognition.

I'm a Naval Academy grad, and most of the guys I know really like this choice.

The NAACP lobbied hard to get Miller the CMH for what he did on dec 7th. They had to settle for a mere Navy Cross.

I appreciate the importance of symbolism. I also hate watching one tradition after another subjegate itself to another gesture of national contrition. Where will it end.

[Smokin Joe]

@Smokin Joe

You mean that wasn't a documentary?

Who knew?

Pssst! Your Special Forces bias is showing...

[Fishrrman]

I'm gonna go against the grain and take some flak, but I just don't see it proper to name an aircraft carrier for this guy, even though he was a hero.

Aircraft carriers get named for presidents and major battles.
Not individual servicemen.

Besides, Mr. Miller has already had one Navy vessel named after him, is that right...?

[sneakypete]

I'm gonna go against the grain and take some flak, but I just don't see it proper to name an aircraft carrier for this guy, even though he was a hero.

Aircraft carriers get named for presidents and major battles.
Not individual servicemen.

Besides, Mr. Miller has already had one Navy vessel named after him, is that right...?

@Fishrrman

Yes,and it was a warship too,not a buoy tender or a supply ship. IIRC,it was a frigate.