Two Navy SEALs face disciplinary action over racist memes
A couple of enlisted sailors with SEAL Team 4 face disciplinary action for racist conduct. The two sailors are accused of circulating racist memes aimed at a Black sailor in their platoon. This incident started happening in 2022 but has recently come to light. The targeted sailor’s SEAL Trident was also revoked. The sailor alleged that the revocation was based on this racist treatment. His qualifications are in the process of being reinstated and he is due to get back pay.
From Associated Press:
“This was a very shocking case of explicit and repeated racist memes directed at our client in a platoon-wide text thread,” said Timothy Parlatore, the sailor’s lawyer, referring to the memes shared over a Signal chat. “They modified his face in photos to look like a monkey and portrayed him as a chained slave on a slave ship, among others.”
The two enlisted sailors responsible for the memes face non-judicial punishment and punitive letters in their files. Both actions can be career ending, or can result in demotions or loss of pay. Other actions are still pending.
The platoon and team leaders are also facing administrative actions, including disciplinary letters in their files, that could determine if they continue as SEALs.
In a statement, Naval Special Warfare Command acknowledged the investigation into “serious allegations of unprofessional conduct within one of our commands” and said “accountability actions are ongoing.”
It added that “we are dedicated to fostering a climate of dignity and respect, and after conducting a thorough and fair investigation, we will hold anyone found responsible of misconduct accountable.”
Parlatore praised Rear Adm. Jamie Sands, head of NSW, and his staff for taking swift action to “investigate, reverse the negative repercussions that our client received, and move to hold people accountable.”
This is just the latest significant investigation into behavior issues and command failures at Naval Special Warfare Command. And it underscores racial concerns that are not new to the special warfare leaders.
Commando forces across the services — particularly the officers — tend to be far less diverse than the military as a whole. And leaders in recent years have tried to attract a wider array of recruits in order to develop a more diverse force.
Additional Reading:
Baldor, L. C. (2025, May 20). Racist memes shared by Navy SEALs prompt investigation, disciplinary actions. Associated Press. link.
Category: Big Navy, Society, Veterans in the news
WTF is wrong with these Seals, where they depend on each other to get the job done and survive. I shouldn’t have commented on this untill I hear the whole story.
I seen shit like this happen before. It usually goes like this:
1) Servicemember who happens to be of certain ethnic or racial background becomes a shitbag, and does shitbaggery things.
2) Criticism of the servicemember, or serviceperson, inexorably goes from addressing the specific shitbaggery, to generalized negative opinions of the people sharing the serviceperson’s background.
3) People not directly involved in the issue find out.
4) Everything becomes about the racist epithets used.
5) Everyone forgets about the original shitbaggery committed by the minority serviceperson, who is then seen as the victim.
I will hold my opinion until all the details come out, but I am tired of sacrificing our fighting men to the altar of political correctness. We all call stupid shit each other, specially when someone fucks up. So I will not jump on the bandwagon asking for Seal skins.
I’m waiting for the Youtube stories before judgment
If there is one thing every SEAL seems to agree on is that they function as a team. There may be some interpersonal contentions or shitbaggery but essential element is that they they are a team or else they are not.
Better that they had kept this at the platoon level, let them fight it out, shake hands and “make up”. At least at the early stage.
Ask Eddie Gallagher how that worked out or just read his book…
You’d think in today’s age, that kind of racism would be long gone. If the SM was a douche, that should have been the leadership’s problem to correct, and DOCUMENT (CYA).
Well, the people accused of being rayciz are two NCOs, so probably peers of the shitbag that was called mean names.
And it happened in 2022 in the middle of the third Obama term, when people of a certain background thought they had free rein to do as they wished with zero accountability.
“Hey, Chief told us to string the knotted Para Cord on the whirly bird’s hanger door to dry out. There’s a loop in the end so we could do pull ups and keep them stretched out.”
Yeah, I’ll wait, too. I’m sure there’s a lot more to this tale.
Maybe the SEAL Team shoulda posted this notice in their billet area?
Fuck Ya’all, I’m not racist, I hate everyone equally….if you’re a shitbag, then you’re a shitbag…black, white, green, yellow….whatever….and there aren’t stereotypes if the behaviors don’t support the PC attitudes.
You are all equally worthless….. (except OAM who is a Goddess.)
YouTube is getting very wussy and easily traumatized lately.
Things that make ya go hmmmm…
“The sailor had been in one of the SEAL Team 4 platoons but had his qualifications and SEAL trident revoked last year. He alleged that his failure to remain a SEAL was due to the racist treatment.”
The douchebaggery is afoot, Watson.
Racist memes shared by Navy SEALs prompt investigation | AP News
The situation starts in 2022. TWO YEARS LATER he has his Budweiser revoked. He contends at that time he was being punished because of the “racist treatment” that he had suffered at the hands of others…
Um…I’m not reading this right, or there’s a Walrus identifying as a Seal somewhere on Fire Island…
The way I am tracking this they ruined his reputation and were treating him unfairly with the racist targeting and then he lost his Trident two years later.
That would seem to follow.
If the unit leadership is allowing this to happen then they are just as guilty as whoever started and sent the messages out. This isn’t hazing either. This is poor life choices by those involved. I hope they throw their asses out.