1:37Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk with a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew execute aerial training exercises within the Caribbean Sea, July 15, 2025. Seaman Corrie Gill/USCG
The Coast Guard is refuting claims indicating the service will discontinue identifying swastikas and nooses as symbols of hate — delivering a firm rebuttal.
A Coast Guard document, dated November 2, seemed to imply that such symbols would be regarded as instances of harassment as opposed to hate crimes. The U.S. Coast Guard addressed its directive Thursday evening in a revised document that clarifies "hate symbols" remain forbidden.
Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk with a Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew execute aerial training exercises within the Caribbean Sea, July 15, 2025.Seaman Corrie Gill/USCG
However, the Nov. 2 iteration appeared to swap out the term “hate” for “harassment.”
"Actions previously treated as a possible hate crime, notably those involving symbols widely associated with oppression or animosity, are handled as a harassment report in situations where an identifiable harmed individual exists, or according to Chapter 11 of this Instruction," stated the policy update from Nov. 2. "The phrase ‘hate crime’ is no longer used in policy."
Acting Commandant of the Coast Guard Kevin Lunday asserted that the "contentions that the U.S. Coast Guard will cease to categorize swastikas, nooses, or analogous extremist imagery as banned symbols are unequivocally wrong."
Lunday stated that any "manifestation, utilization, or endorsement of such symbols will, as has always been the case, be thoroughly scrutinized and severely sanctioned."
"The Coast Guard’s dedication to cultivating a secure, respectful, and professional atmosphere remains steadfast," Lunday conveyed in the statement. "Symbols like swastikas, nooses, and other extremist or prejudiced images clash with our foundational principles and are addressed with the gravity they merit under existing guidelines."
"These symbols have consistently been and will continue to be outlawed within the Coast Guard according to policy," Lunday communicated in a statement.
Members of the U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team West safeguard waterways within the San Francisco Bay, Oct. 9, 2025.Petty Officer 3rd Class Joel LaVallee/USCG
ABC News examined the Nov. 2 policy document and contrasted it with a 2023 version, finding variations in wording regarding potential symbols of hate as opposed to symbols of division.
It seemed that Coast Guard personnel would be subject to disciplinary actions if these images were displayed.
The central distinction seemed to be the shift from labeling incidents involving these images as “hate” to identifying them as instances of harassment.
"Potentially divisive symbols and flags encompass, but are not restricted to, the following: a noose, a swastika, along with symbols or flags appropriated or taken up by groups rooted in hatred as representations of dominance, prejudice based on race or religion, or other forms of bias," as stated in the November 2025 document.
A parallel 2023 document assessed by ABC News, specifies "a noose, a swastika, symbols of supremacy, Confederate symbols or flags, and anti-Semitic symbols" as categories of "potential hate crimes."
The Coast Guard’s document, made public Thursday, declares that "symbols and flags promoting division or hatred are prohibited."
"These symbols and flags encompass, but are not confined to, the following: a noose, a swastika, plus any symbols or flags seized or embraced by hate-driven groups as expressions of supremacy, prejudice grounded in race or religion, anti-Semitism, or any other improper biases," the instruction details. "Displaying any symbol promoting division or hate is forbidden and must be eliminated from all Coast Guard workspaces, facilities, and resources."
U.S. Coast Guard Maritime Security Response Team service members patrol the Upper Bay close to the Statue of Liberty within New York City, Sept. 25, 2025.Petty Officer Third Class Marco Gutierrez Rosales/USCG
In a communication to Coast Guard members, acquired by ABC News, Lunday and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Phil Waldron directly tackled The Washington Post’s coverage of the policy modification.
"Allow me to state explicitly: The Coast Guard's policy banning hate and discrimination is absolute," conveyed the message. "These outlawed symbols embody repulsive ideologies that stand in stark contradiction to all that we represent. We maintain zero latitude for hatred among our ranks."
Sourse: abcnews.go.com
