U.S. Military Branch Reportedly Dropping Designation of Swastika as a Hate Symbol

(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

The U.S. Coast Guard will no longer be identifying the swastika as a hate symbol under new guidelines set to take effect next month, according to The Washington Post, but an administration official is already calling it fake news.

The Post reviewed documents laying out the new guidelines, which take effect on December 15, and the swastika Nazi-era symbol will not be classified as “potentially divisive.” The Confederate flag and nooses are also reportedly seeing their classifications downgraded from the previous brand of hate symbols. Confederate flags are not, however, allowed to be displayed under the new policy.

According to The Post, a “potentially divisive” symbol being displayed should be investigated by a supervisor and then that supervisor is to consult with the legal office. The new guidelines also reportedly require incidents to be reported in 45 days. There were no deadlines previously.

Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, later called The Post’s report a “ludicrous lie.”

“This is an absolute ludicrous lie and unequivocally false,” she wrote on X. “The [Washington Post] should be embarrassed it published this fake crap.”

A Coast Guard official anonymously spoke to The Post and expressed major concern about the new policy change.

“We don’t deserve the trust of the nation if we’re unclear about the divisiveness of swastikas,” the official said.

The official also took issue with the supposed 45-day deadlines, arguing the deadline could be potentially problematic for service members being deployed.

“If you are at sea, and your shipmate has a swastika in their rack, and you are a Black person or Jew, and you are going to be stuck at sea with them for the next 60 days, are you going to feel safe reporting that up your chain of command?” the official said.

The reported policy change is part of broader reforms to military branches under President Donald Trump. The Coast Guard recently announced a new policy, retiring the term “hate incidents.”

“Conduct previously handled as a potential hate incident, including those involving symbols widely identified with oppression or hatred, is processed as a report of harassment,” that policy states.