The directive could be expanded to include other military vessels named for prominent American civil rights figures, said people familiar with internal discussions.

Mr. Milk’s name adorns numerous sites in the city, where he became a trailblazer for gay rights before he was killed in 1978. The Pentagon is considering stripping his name from a Navy vessel.

In early June 2025, also known as Pride Month, rumors circulated that Harvey Milk, a gay rights activist and the first openly gay man to be elected to public office in California, was a pedophile. The claim spread online as Military.