Dr. LaKeshia N. Myers
By LaKeshia N. Myers
When I heard that the Trump administration was considering stripping Medgar Evers’ name from a U.S. Navy vessel, I felt a familiar burn in my chest – the same one I get when I witness injustice masquerading as policy. This isn’t just about a ship’s name; it’s about a deliberate attempt to erase Black excellence from American history.
Let me remind you who Medgar Evers was, because apparently some folks in Washington (and even Wisconsin) need a history lesson. Born in 1925 in Decatur, Mississippi, Evers served his country with honor in World War II, fighting in the battles of Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. He returned home to a segregated Mississippi that denied him the very freedoms he’d fought to protect overseas. But did he retreat? Did he accept second-class citizenship? Hell no.
Evers became Mississippi’s first NAACP field secretary, organizing voter registration drives when registering Black voters was a death sentence. He investigated lynchings when law enforcement wouldn’t. He fought for the integration of the University of Mississippi when doing so meant putting a target on his back. On June 12, 1963, a white supremacist’s bullet ended his life in his own driveway, but his sacrifice ignited a movement that would change America forever.
This man, this American hero, was honored with a naval vessel bearing his name in 2011 – a recognition long overdue. Now, a week after Pentagon leaders announced their intention to possibly rename the USNS Medgar Evers, his family is urging the Department of Defense and the Navy to reverse their position. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is considering removing his name, calling it part of what he believes is “wokeness in the military.”
Wokeness? Let me tell you what’s woke – recognizing that a man who served his country in war and gave his life for civil rights deserves to have his name on a ship that defends the freedoms he died for. What’s truly woke is understanding that diversity isn’t divisive; it’s the foundation of American strength.
This assault on Evers’ memory is part of a broader, more sinister campaign. After Trump started his second term in 2025, he signed an executive order to eliminate all Diversity, Equality and Inclusion programs. In the wake of that order, Evers was erased from a section of the Arlington National Cemetery website that honored Black Americans who fought in the nation’s wars. There is a list of other possible name changes of ships named after prominent women and civil rights leaders. How dreadful that a president who dodged military service has the audacity to erase the names of men and women who willingly put their lives on the line for freedom and democracy? Isn’t it ironic?
The Trump administration has canceled government contracts it says were tied to “illegal DEI,” shuttered offices addressing civil rights violations. They’re dismantling decades of progress under the guise of promoting “merit” – as if acknowledging Black contributions to America somehow diminishes white achievement.
This isn’t about merit; it’s about erasure. It’s about rewriting history to comfort those who can’t handle the truth that Black Americans have always been essential to this nation’s success.