Doris Miller’s family ‘shocked’ by Navy’s reported consideration of honoring Trump instead of black war hero – live

Doris Miller’s Family Shocked by Navy Carrier Naming

Wanderstayfinder.com – The family of Doris Miller — the 19-year-old Black sailor who fired a pistol at Japanese divers during the December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor — says it was blindsided when reports surfaced that the US Navy is weighing swapping Miller’s name off an aircraft carrier in favor of Donald Trump. Thomas Bledsoe, Miller’s great nephew, called the reported change “quite a shock” and emphasized that no relative received advance notice from the service. The family learned of the proposal through a news outlet rather than through any official Navy channel.

For Bledsoe and the wider Black community, the carrier is far more than a label on a hull. It represents a concrete acknowledgment of sacrifice by a young enlisted sailor who earned the Navy and Marine Corps Medal, the highest decoration awarded to a non-commissioned member in that conflict. Critics of the proposed swap argue that placing a political figure in the same symbolic slot as a decorated wartime sailor dilutes the purpose of the naming tradition itself.

“Not only was it a shock, but it was also shocking that we found out from a news outlet [and not] from the Navy.”

“It’s about an opportunity and a goal. It’s about what it means to be an American and it’s also about how we as a community can grow as one.”

Deportee Flight Diverts to Equatorial Guinea

In a separate development this week, five migrants bound for Liberia chose to remain seated on the aircraft rather than step onto Liberian soil. The flight, however, had quietly diverted to Malabo, capital of Equatorial Guinea, where authorities compelled the group to disembark against their will. Two sources familiar with the incident confirmed the sequence, while a third — a Honduran deportee aboard the same flight — supplied additional detail about what transpired once the plane touched down in West Africa.

The five who resisted consisted of three Cuban men, one Brazilian man, and one Cameroonian woman. After officials initially told them they would be returned to the United States, the aircraft instead continued southward. In most cases, these individuals had secured legal protection against repatriation after US immigration judges determined they faced risks of torture or other abuses if sent back to their countries of origin. Despite that judicial shield, the administration pressed ahead with the third-country transfer, a practice that has drawn sharp criticism from immigrants’ rights advocates and human rights organizations.

The episode marks an early complication in Washington’s broader strategy to ship as many as 1,200 so-called third-country deportees to Liberia — one of the largest such arrangements the administration has negotiated across the African continent. Liberia publicly announced on Tuesday that it had agreed to accept the deportees and that an initial group of 20 would arrive Thursday. Yet a Liberian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed to Reuters that only 15 actually disembarked.

The five now find themselves held alongside more than 30 other migrants whom the administration had previously relocated to Equatorial Guinea under a separate bilateral arrangement. That deal, like several others struck across Africa, has been denounced by rights groups who argue that many deportees are ultimately sent back to their home countries regardless of their legal status in the United States. In May, a panel of United Nations human rights experts issued an unusually pointed public appeal urging Equatorial Guinea to halt its plans to return US deportees to nations where they face political violence, torture, and death.

The State Department maintained on Friday that it remained “unwavering in our commitment to end illegal and mass immigration and bolster America’s border security.” A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson went further, stating that all the migrants “were deported to a safe third country” and adding: “If a judge finds an illegal alien has no right to be in this country, we are going to remove them. Period.” Liberia’s information ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did the deportees refuse to leave the plane in Liberia?

The five individuals — three Cuban men, one Brazilian man, and one Cameroonian woman — had obtained court-ordered protection against being sent back to their home countries. They chose to stay seated rather than accept repatriation, not anticipating that the flight would divert to Equatorial Guinea, where they were ultimately forced off the aircraft.

What is the Navy’s aircraft carrier naming controversy?

Reports indicate the Navy is considering renaming an aircraft carrier originally designated for Doris Miller, a Black enlisted sailor decorated for heroism at Pearl Harbor, in favor of Donald Trump. Miller’s family, represented by great nephew Thomas Bledsoe, says it received no prior notice and learned of the proposal only through media coverage.

How many deportees does the Liberia arrangement involve?

The administration has negotiated a deal to send up to 1,200 third-country deportees to Liberia. An initial group of 20 was scheduled to arrive Thursday, though a Liberian official confirmed to Reuters that only 15 actually disembarked.