WASHINGTON (AP) — Two Navy SEALs based in Hampton Roads are facing disciplinary action for racist conduct, and several of their platoon and team leaders are being disciplined for leadership failures, a defense official told the Associated Press.
The two enlisted Team 4 members are being punished for developing racist memes targeting a Black sailor in their platoon and circulating them in a group chat with other team members, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details of an ongoing investigation. The memes depicted the sailor as a slave, according to visuals viewed by The Associated Press.
Watch related coverage: Uncertainty remains about whether or not TRADOC will remain in Hampton Roads
According to the official, the sailor who was targeted reported the incidents this year, but they took place beginning in 2022 and the memes circulated for years. 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.
Two officials said that as a result of the investigation, which was conducted by Naval Special Warfare Group 2, the sailor’s SEAL qualifications are being reinstated and he will get back pay. The group oversees SEAL Team 4 and the platoons that make up the team, located at Joint Base Little Creek-Fort Story in Hampton Roads, Virginia
Watch related coverage: Navy addresses mental health of young sailors
The platoon and team leaders are also facing administrative actions, including disciplinary letters in their files, that could determine if they continue as SEALs.
The probe found that the platoon and SEAL Team 4 leaders did not adequately address the sailor’s concerns about racist behavior and that the decision to revoke his qualifications was flawed.
“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.
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.”
