By The FirstA group of activists are asking the government to rename the James Webb Space Telescope because of the former Truman officials policies about hiring LGBTQ+ personnel between 1949 and 1952.
“The agency has also faced criticism for naming its signature project after former NASA Administrator James Webb, who previously had served as undersecretary of state during the Truman administration, when the federal government systematically purged its ranks of LGBTQ employees,” reports NBC News.
“NASA found no evidence at this point that warrants changing the name of the telescope,” said a statement from the agency. “They are compiling their information now into an update the agency will share.”
“Webb ran NASA, then a fledgling space agency, from 1961 to 1968, playing a major role in the Apollo program. Prior to his role at NASA, he served with the Truman administration during a period in the 1950s now known as the Lavender Scare. From the late 1940s to the 1960s, thousands of federal employees were forced to resign or were fired because of their sexual orientation or gender identity,” adds NBC.
Read the full report here.
