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Captain Crozier - An American Hero 2020
As a soon to be mother, I was deeply worried about my husband, who is deployed on the USS Roosevelt. I am so glad he has a commander, Captain Crozier, an American Hero who understands and puts people and not just sailors, family members, sons, daughters, our loved ones, that serve under him first.
I can’t believe the United States Navy has relieved Capt. Brett Crozier, commanding officer of USS Theodore Roosevelt. Like many family members and siblings related to those that serve on the USS Roosevelt, I/We felt the need to speak up. Especially on behalf of the thousands of sailors of the aircraft-carrier and their families.
If not for Capt. Crozier, almost 5,000 sailors on board the USS Theodore Roosevelt, may have been infected by the dreaded Coronavirus by now. Scary as it may sound, but it may have led to losing the lives of hundreds or even thousands of our beloved Navy and Marines. This is not an exaggeration as data has it that there were about a hundred servicemen onboard who had already tested positive by the time action was taken regarding the situation then aboard the ship. 
This intervention from the Navy came only after the highly-publicized letter bravely written by Capt. Crozier had reached the hands of the upper echelon of the highly esteemed US Navy.
It pains my family and me to know the unceremonious conclusion to Capt. Crozier’s command of the USS Theodore Roosevelt since he has been deemed a hero by us, the family and friends of the ship’s Navy men and women.
Instead of honoring the leadership of Capt. Crozier, this is the acknowledgment that he gets for the right decision. It’s disrespectful to our flag that his sense of responsibility and concern for our family members serving has received an unjust punishment. Captain Crozier was proactive in saving our family member's lives. But, our Navy, the highers-up reward him this way? I have to assume they did not have any family members aboard.
I am a civilian, so I do not know how to tackle the nitty-gritty details of following protocol and the chain of command. For me, what warrants mention is his loyalty to our men and women on board, our loved ones. His speaking out on the issues makes Crozier my Hero!
He did what he thought was in the best interest of the safety and well-being of his crew as he is ultimately responsible for them. I see no point why Capt. Crozier had to step down as captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt pending investigation to look into the details of the ship’s outbreak, and if indeed, he breached security protocol.
For me, Capt. Crozier did nothing alarming or sensationalist but instead acted within his power and responsibility by communicating the challenges he and his men were encountering during the unprecedented pandemic. It is proper to function within one’s rights to raise concerns with your chain of command about a troubling situation on your ship. He deserves praise and our boundless gratitude for his decisive action in issuing that urgent plea to evacuate his crew.
I believe he was only performing his job extraordinarily well as former Vice President Joe Bidden put it, Capt. Crozier was just “faithful to both his national security mission and his duty to care for his sailors, and who rightly focused attention on a broader concern about how to maintain military readiness during this pandemic."
The bottom line is that Capt. Crozier was thrown overboard. Capt. Crozier is a true American hero for the thousands of service members who have been rescued from the pending doom. His 4-page letter sent through e-mail saved lives and initiated the US Navy to take action. God-knows-what-would-have-happened?
The Navy has disregarded the welfare of our sailors, our family members. How many families would have lost their loved ones? How many children would have lost a father or mother? How many spouses would have lost their life partners? Many American families would have lost a husband, a wife, a father, a mother, a son, a daughter, an uncle, an aunt, or a grandchild.