NATIONAL AND US NEWS FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Member of Little Rock Nine christens nuclear submarine named for Arkansas

Dec 7, 2024, 3:45 PM | Updated: Dec 8, 2024, 1:06 am

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — The nuclear submarine USS Arkansas was christened Saturday, almost a decade in the making since the U.S. Navy announced that a Virginia-class submarine would bear the state’s name.

Carlotta Walls LaNier, one the nine Black students who desegregated Little Rock Central High School in 1957, launched a bottle of sparking wine into the hull of the Virginia-class submarine at Newport News Shipbuilding in Virginia.

In 2018, then-Navy Secretary Ray Mabus named the six women of the Little Rock Nine as sponsors of the ship. Besides LaNier, Elizabeth Eckford and Gloria Ray Karlmark also attended the ceremony. All the sponsors had their initials welded into steel plates when the submarine’s keel was laid in 2022.

“History is full of groups of collective people who come together to make something happen,” the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported that LaNier said in a speech before the crowd at the shipyard. “Many people are behind the submarine that we christened today. It’s similar to the quote on our currency, E pluribus unum — ‘Out of many, one.’ We have SSN 800, but many participated in the reality of it being here today.”

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro called the ship “the very best of our submarine force capabilities.”

“She will always be propelled by the proud legacy of her namesake, represented here today by three of her courageous sponsors, who overcame tremendous adversity as members of the Little Rock Nine,” Del Toro said.

A number of speakers also noted the 83rd anniversary of Japan’s attack in Pearl Harbor, the event that launched the United States into World War II.

The submarine is the fifth naval ship named for Arkansas, including a battleship. The most recent was a guided missile cruiser that was decommissioned in 1988.

The Arkansas is the 27th in a series of Virginia-class submarines and the 13th built at Newport News, a massive shipyard owned by Huntington Ingalls Industries. The other submarines are built at General Dynamics Corp.’s Electric Boat shipyard in Connecticut.

The Arkansas is expected to launch in 2025.

National and US News from the Associated Press

Demonstrators and lawmakers rally against President Donald Trump and his ally Elon Musk as they dis...

Associated Press

Forced leaves start for thousands at USAID under a Trump plan to gut the foreign aid agency

WASHINGTON (AP) — Forced leaves began in Washington and worldwide Friday for most employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development, as federal workers associations turned to the courts to try to roll back Trump administration orders that have dismantled most of the agency and U.S.- funded aid programs around the world. Under a Trump […]

7 minutes ago

Associated Press

The Latest: US allies in Europe join ICC against Trump’s sanctions over Israel

The International Criminal Court on Friday called on its member states to stand up against sanctions imposed by President Donald Trump, saying that the move was an attempt to “harm its independent and impartial judicial work.” And the embattled court got plenty of support from traditional U.S. allies in Europe who stood up against the […]

18 minutes ago

Associated Press

2 dead, 3 injured in weather event with ‘possible tornado,’ officials in Tennessee say

WARTBURG, Tenn. (AP) — Two people were killed in eastern Tennessee when severe storms with a possible tornado moved through the region. Local officials announced Friday morning that a mother and daughter from the same household were killed when the storm passed through the Deer Lodge and Sunbright areas of Morgan County on Thursday night. […]

44 minutes ago

Tim Andrews smiles as he leaves Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on Feb. 1, 2025. (Kate Flo...

Associated Press

New Hampshire man is 2nd person known to be living with a pig kidney

A New Hampshire man fought for the chance at a pig kidney transplant, spending months getting into good enough shape to be part of a small pilot study of a highly experimental treatment. His effort paid off: Tim Andrews, 66, is only the second person known to be living with a pig kidney. Andrews is […]

1 hour ago

Rev. Esteban Rodriguez, who leads Centro Cristiano El Pan de Vida, prays for congregants during a c...

Associated Press

Latino evangelical churches gear up to face possible immigration enforcement in churches

Bishop Ebli De La Rosa says his motto right now is “to prepare for the worst and pray for the best.” De La Rosa, who oversees Church of God of Prophecy congregations in nine southeastern states, says he has had to respond quickly to the Trump administration’s new orders, which have thrown out policies that […]

1 hour ago

Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba steps off the plane after arriving at Joint Base Andrews, Md....

Associated Press

Japan’s Ishiba makes a whirlwind Washington trip to try to forge a personal connection with Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba didn’t skimp on the legwork as he prepared for his first meeting with President Donald Trump. He huddled this week with SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, two executives Trump recently hosted at the White House. He sought advice from his immediate predecessor, Fumio […]

2 hours ago

Member of Little Rock Nine christens nuclear submarine named for Arkansas