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    USS Princeton celebrates LGBTQ community

    USS Princeton celebrates LGBTQ community

    Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Logan Kellums | 200711-N-OW019-0003 PHILIPPINE SEA (July 11, 2020) Chief Culinary Specialist Frank...... read more read more

    U.S. 7TH FLEET AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY

    07.11.2020

    Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Logan Kellums 

    Carrier Strike Group 11

    7th Fleet Area of Operations – The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) hosted a PRIDE event July 11 recognizing the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community with a celebration on the ship’s mess decks.

    Sailors created tie-dyed t-shirts and participated in a cake cutting ceremony recognizing the LGBTQ community and its impact throughout Princeton, the Navy and the nation.

    Electronics Technician 2nd Class Thomas Reid, a member of the Princeton diversity committee, believes that the LGBTQ community is all about bringing people closer together.

    “Being a part of the LGBTQ community has opened my mind to see that a lot of people are different,” Reid said. “The differences should not set us apart but bring us together. The LGBTQ community is for all people whether or not you are actually LGBTQ.”

    Recognizing the LGBTQ community is one way of celebrating diversity that is found within the skin of every Navy ship.

    “Our country is diverse. Always has been and always will be whether we see it every day or not,” said Lt. j.g. Kenechi Chukwuogo, the head of Princeton’s diversity committee. “It’s important because it exists, and it’s a huge part of what makes America different and unique.

    “It was an opportunity for us to show that we recognize and acknowledge LGBTQ month and the hardships that many have gone through,” Chukwuogo said. Until the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2010, LGBTQ service members could not openly serve.

    The LGBTQ PRIDE celebration reminded Sailors that it is important to take a moment to recognize the strength in diversity found throughout the Navy and the nation. Princeton’s diversity committee will continue holding celebrations to honor Sailors from various backgrounds throughout deployment.

    Princeton is part of the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group and is deployed conducting maritime security operation and theater security cooperation efforts.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 07.11.2020
    Date Posted: 07.22.2020 04:54
    Story ID: 374326
    Location: U.S. 7TH FLEET AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY

    Web Views: 227
    Downloads: 0

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