The United States Coast Guard seemed to reverse course on an earlier policy on “hate symbols” like the Swastika and the noose following backlash over reports that it had adopted a softer stance on them.
According to a report in The Washington Post, the Coast Guard allegedly wrote a policy earlier this month which called the above symbols “potentially divisive”. This was a shift from the earlier policy which said swastikas and nooses were “widely identified with oppression or hatred”, the Associated Press reported.
The policy had also reportedly stopped short of banning these symbols, while saying that commanders could take steps to remove them from public view. It added that the rule did not apply to private spaces like family housing.
‘Disgusting’: Swastika policy sparks backlash
Following The Washington Post’s report, several American personalities reacted to the policy, including newly-elected New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. Mamdani, in a one-word response, said the new stance was “disgusting.”
Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey, a Democrat, also called the reported shift “disgusting” and an attempt to “normalise hate.”
Meanwhile, Congressman Jerry Nadler said that the Swastika was not just a “divisive symbol” but also “the emblem of Nazism, white supremacy, and the genocide of six million Jews, a symbol American troops died by the hundreds of thousands to defeat.”
While calling the new stance “indefensible”, he added that the Americans cannot allow the Trump administration to “downplay the symbols of fascism.”
Democrat Senator from Nevada Jacky Rosen said that the change “rolls back important protections against bigotry” and could allow for “horrifically hateful symbols like swastikas and nooses to be inexplicably permitted to be displayed.”
US Coast Guard denies policy, releases firmer rules
The US Coast Guard categorically denied the report suggesting a softer stance on these symbols, with the Department of Homeland Security saying people were “making things up.”
The USCG, in a statement, said it had released “a policy and lawful order that doubles down on its current policies prohibiting the display, distribution or use of hate symbols by Coast Guard personnel.”
“The policy and lawful order provides clear definitions, guidance and expectations for Coast Guard personnel. It describes prohibited hate symbols in alignment with military policy,” the statement said, adding that this was not an updated policy but a new one to “combat any misinformation.”
Assistant Secretary Dept. of Homeland Security called the report by The Washington Post “an absolute ludicrous lie.”
The latest policy released by the USCG bans the display of any divisive or hate symbols on all Coast Guard locations, and will take effect immediately.
