The U.S. Navy has revealed that it approached a “drag queen influencer” to help persuade new recruits to join the military. Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley, who goes by the stage name “Harpy Daniels,” announced back in November 2022 that he was the Navy’s “Digital Ambassador.” Kelley has over 1,300,000 likes on TikTok.
While Kelley’s Instagram bio shows that the performer’s opinions “are not endorsed by DoD or DoN,” the drag queen claims to have danced in drag for service officers on a number of different occasions, sharing one video from 2018.
According to Fox News, The Digital Ambassador initiative that Kelley participated in ran from October 2022 to March 2023 and was “designed to explore the digital environment to reach a wide range of potential candidates,” a Navy spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The reason, the spokesperson added, was that the Navy is navigating “the most challenging recruiting environment it has faced since the start of the all-volunteer force.”
The spokesperson continued: “The Navy did not compensate YN2 Kelley or any others for being Navy Digital Ambassadors. The pilot has concluded and we are now evaluating the program and how it will exist in the future.”
The Navy’s attempts to increase interest among young people comes amidst a historic recruitment crisis. A survey from the Ronald Reagan Institute found that only 13% of 18-29-year-olds are “highly willing” to join the military. Twenty-five percent are “somewhat willing” and 26% are “not willing at all.”
Kelley has also posted directly about serving as a “Digital Ambassador” for the Navy on Instagram. “From joining to 2016 and being able to share my drag experience on my off time with my fellow sailors has been a blessing,” Kelley wrote.
“This experience has brought me so much strength, courage and ambition to continue being an advocate and representation of queer sailors!” “Thank you to the Navy for giving me this opportunity! I don’t speak for the Navy but simply sharing my experience in the Navy! Hooyah, and let’s go Slay!” the drag queen added. The controversy over drag queens in the military is part of a broader battle over gender ideology in the Navy and all branches of the U.S. armed forces.
