The U.S. Navy Personnel Command issued an apology Monday evening after its Twitter account posted a motivational quote from Confederate Navy Capt. Raphael Semmes.
“It has been brought to our attention that today’s Motivation Monday post came across as insensitive. The series consists of leadership quotes throughout our Navy’s history,” the Navy Personnel Command tweeted Monday. “We used a poor example and we sincerely apologize if we’ve offended anyone.”
It has been brought to our attention that today’s Motivation Monday post came across as insensitive. The series consists of leadership quotes throughout our Navy’s history. We used a poor example and we sincerely apologize if we’ve offended anyone.
— USN People (@usnpeople) September 17, 2018
The quote in question read, “A military, or naval man, cannot go very far astray, who abides by the point of honor.”
The Navy Personnel Command had also shared a link with more information on Semmes, detailing in the first paragraph how Semmes was involved in the Confederate Navy.
Semmes, who also served in the Mexican-American War for the U.S. Navy, commanded the C.S.S. Alabama during the Civil War for the Confederate States Navy. The town of Semmes, Ala., is named after him, as is Semmes Avenue in Richmond.
