Ship commanded by Black woman admiral rescued Maersk Alabama captain

[ensho]

http://www.todaysdrum.com/4650/ship-commanded-by-black-woman-admiral-rescued-maersk-alabama-captain/


Rear Admiral Michelle Howard received the assignment of leading the U.S. Navy’s counter-piracy task force just three days before the Maersk Alabama was attacked by Somalia pirates.
-snip-
--------------------------

there are pics

[Canuckistanian]

1. So? n/t

[havocmom]

5. So? So much for women aboard ships being bad luck

for starters.

This detail is probably gonna make some old salts' heads explode

[snowdays]

8. Congratulations would be order, not immature snarks.

[xultar]

19. I think you're trying to be like its no biggie which is PC . But you are coming across rude.

I didn't even know there was a black woman Rear Admiral. Plus, she was in a really tough situation.

It gives young black women something to aspire to in life. As a black woman I'm more than thrilled that someone posted her role in such an important situation.

So, just think b4 u post

[Canuckistanian]

27. Sorry,no snark intended

It was just my clumsy attempt to say it shouldn't matter.

Point taken.

[sarge43]

23. Because about one life time ago, Adm Howard would have been unthinkable.

Some of us old timers vividly remember the bad old days, de jure and de facto segregation. The only blacks assigned to ships were males as mess stewards. The Nam War broke down some of that, but only some. It wasn't until the late sixties that I saw a black AF officer, late seventies before I met a black pilot. Seldom saw a black senior noncom. And no, I wasn't stuck out in the back sheds. I was a Personnel puke stationed at major AF bases. Everyone on base congaed through our paper mill.

Among the other crap service women had to put up with, officers were capped at O-5, Lt Colonel/Commander. That didn't go away until mid-seventies. The only road to commissions for a woman was college, then Officer Training School, no academies or ROTC. Again, until mid seventies, the only units women could command were the women's units, for example AF WAFSqSec. They were banned from ships and aircrews period, with exception of nurses. It wasn't much better for the enlisted. When I made E-7 late seventies, I was one of about 300 women AF senior noncoms. Not because I was hot stuff; again until mid-seventies women were capped at 2 percent of the active duty force. Just wasn't that many of us.

The above is only a brief synopsis of a long, painful battle.

So damn right I'll give Adm Howard an "atagirl!!". She represents a noble, hard fought for victory. Some day you can say "so?", but not yet.

:patriot:, ma'am.

[Spazito]

24. Well said!

I love first hand accounts presenting the facts as they really are. Thank you for doing that.

[sarge43]

25. Thank you, Spazito.

Least we forget.

[Number23]

28. "Some day you can say "so?", but not yet."

Very nice, Sarge. :yourock:

[sarge43]

30. Thank you, 23.

Canuckistanian is absolutely right; it shouldn't matter. I hope I hang around long enough to see the day when it truly doesn't.

[Blue_Tires]

2. wow...i didn't even know that...

[Marrah_G]

3. Nice- good for her !

[NorthernSpy]

4. That's cool!

I hadn't even known there were black women holding the rank of Admiral.

[EFerrari]

10. Me, either. Really very cool!

[JonLP24]

11. Didn't surprise me

I'm still waiting for the first female Sergeant Major of the Army. There are many female Command Sergeant Majors.

[bullwinkle428]

6. Countdown to first post from Freeperland stating...

"ITZ A KONSPEERACY, I TELLZ YA!!1!1"

:crazy:

[sammytko]

7. That is awesome!

[supernova]

9. Three cheers for Admiral Howard!

Hip Hip Hooray!

Hip Hip Hooray!

Hip Hip Hooray!

[imdjh]

12. Smart woman- stayed off TV n/t

[polmaven]

13. What??/?/

A black woman gave the order to shoot "black Muslim teenagers"?//?/?

What was that sound? Oh, just Rush's head exploding. Nothing important.

[MADem]

14. What a load of minimizing CRAP!!!! AGGGGGGGH!!!!!!

That Admiral doesn't comand "A" ship, she commands an entire TASK FORCE of ships--Combined Task Force 151, to be precise.

Her days of being a lowly skipper are well behind her, now.

http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=41687

The person who commanded the actual ship that rescued the merchant captain was a commander--RADM Howard may have been embarked in the vessel and flying her flag from it, but she would have been there as his (and a bunch of other skippers' as well) boss, not the person driving the ship.

[TahitiNut]

15. One of the comments to that story is important. She commanded the TASK FORCE ...

... not the ship. The distinction is important. The Captain of a ship, where 'Captain' is the role, not the rank, has final command authority over all shipboard operations. When multiple ships are formed into a task force, one of those ships will be designated as the "flag ship" as a result of the commander of the Task Force being aboard that ship. Even though the Admiral will be aboard that ship, the Captain of that ship still COMMANDS that ship. It is an important naval distinction and lives depend on maintaining that command discipline.

[ecstatic]

16. That's great to know. Thanks for posting

a very motivating story for women and minority naval ROTC students. Many moons ago I was in that program for scholarship purposes. It didn't hit me until I finally met one that I had never seen a black female navy officer.

[ensho]

17. thanks for correcting the info - a much more powerful woman

then thought.

[Dreamer Tatum]

18. Nice! nt

[xultar]

20. Sistahs are doin it for themselves.... W00T!!! I'm so proud.

[barbtries]

21. Go woman!

i'm inspired. quietly these milestones are accomplished until one day it won't be part of the story at all.

[BR_Parkway]

22. C'mon Rush - you know you've got to make fun of this somehow -

African American Female? OMG, there's no target you'd rather besmirch to you idiot listeners....

[nadinbrzezinski]

26. Why is the USA today even covering the RACE of the OIC?

Thinks back to wife of captain of certain US Ship that had her car bombed in La Jolla... STOOOPID people

By the way this is the OIC for a WHOLE FUCKING TASKFORCE< that is a LOT OF SHIPS, NOT ONE

Yes, this is really STOOOPID

[ForrestGump]

29. Because it wasn't

SOP in the USN or in any service of the DOD, even after MLK, X, and the SLC and NAACP -- back when JFK and LBJ roamed the CONUS -- collectively raised the "WTF?" level by pointing out that you didn't have to be KKK (a.k.a. 'SOBs') to be support a racist agenda in the USA. OK?

YMMV, of course...

:P

[noiretextatique]

31. In 1999, Howard became the first African-American woman to command a U.S. Navy ship

These "firsts" are news because they are firsts still in 2009. And 2008 with the election of Obama.