On May 5th the US Navy christened and launched the USNS Cesar Chavez, naming the cargo ship after the civil rights leader and union activist. It is the 14th Lewis and Clark-class of dry cargo/ammunition ships and a bold move.
According to the Navy’s website, “Continuing the Lewis and Clark-class tradition of honoring legendary pioneers and explorers, the Navy’s newest underway replenishment ship honors the memory of Mexican-American civil rights activist Cesar Chavez. Chavez served in the Navy from 1944-1946 after which he became a leader in the American Labor Movement and a civil rights activist who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, which later became the United Farm Workers.”
No doubt the Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, will take a lot of heat for this choice. But, the deal is done and the USNS Cesar Chavez carries a message simply and powerfully by virtue of its name.
Is there a person that you would like to honor publicly, a cause that you care for? If so, find a way to say so publicly and let the world be the richer for your spirit.
Editor’s Note: See profile of Nikola Tesla, an inventor, futurist and more.
image credit: livinggenius.com
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Seth Kahan is a Change Leadership specialist. He has consulted with CEOs and executives in over 50 world-class organizations that include Shell, World Bank, Marriott, Prudential, Project Management Institute, and NASA. His book, Getting Change Right: How Leaders Transform Organizations from the Inside Out, is a Washington Post bestseller. Visit GettingChangeRight.com for a free excerpt.
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My good friend, Geri, the founder and editor/publisher of the Good News Network® (http://www.goodnewsnetwork.org), wrote to me:
The names of the other 12 Lewis & Clark cargo ships are:
The USMS Medgar Evers named after the slain African-American civil rights activist from Mississippi involved in efforts to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi.
The USNS William McLean, named for a Navy physicist, who developed the Sidewinder missile.
The USNS Washington Chambers named in honor of a pioneer in naval aviation.
The USNS Charles Drew named after a physician who researched blood transfusions and blood banks that saved thousands of lives in World War II.
The USNS Matthew Perry, who led way to opening Japan to trade with the West.
The USNS Wally Shirra named for one of the first astronauts and the only one to fly in all three pioneering space programs – Mercury, Gemini and Apollo.
The USNS Carl Brashear named after the first African American to become a U.S. Navy Master Diver despite having lost a leg in bomber crash.
The USS Amelia Earhart, after the historic female aviator.
The USNS Robert E. Peary named for the Arctic explorer.
USNS Richard E. Byrd named after a polar explorer.
The USNS Alan Sheppard named for the first American in space
The USS Sacagawea, named after the Shoshone who acted as guide and interpreter the Lewis & Clark expedition.