represent the American flag and the American people John C. Stennis serves. They also honor the courage and sacrifice of the United States' armed forces. The eagle and shield is a representation of the gilt eagle and shield overlooking the Old Senate Chamber. The shield represents the United States of America. The twenty stars represent the US's twentieth state, Mississippi, the home of John C. Stennis. The three arrows in the eagle's talons symbolize the ship's and air wing's ability to project power. The burst of light emanating from the shield, representative of the emergence of a new nation in the United States Senate Seal, portrays the birth of over 25 major Naval Aviation programs under Senator Stennis' leadership, including all aircraft carriers from to , and aircraft from the F-4 Phantom to the F/A-18 Hornet. The eagle is representative of John C. Stennis' stature in the Senate, where he was respected and admired as a "soaring eagle" by some of his colleagues. The ship herself is pictured in the seal. On the edges of the flight deck are the words "Honor, Courage, Commitment" which are the United States Navy's Core Values. The seal, after selection by the ship's crew, was submitted to Mrs. Margaret Stennis Womble, the ship's sponsor and daughter of Senator Stennis, and to Mrs. John Hampton Stennis, the matron of honor and wife of Senator Stennis' son, for their approval. In February 1995 they approved the design. Ship's name controversy The ship's name was originally approved by then-president Ronald Reagan in 1988. As of 2021, the ship's name was the subject of renewed controversy due to Senator Stennis's outspoken opposition to civil rights and racial equality, and his extensive record of legislative support for racial segregation. The controversy is part of a larger reassessment of military bases, ships and other U.S. military assets named after Confederate generals and other persons associated with slavery and racial segregation. See also List of aircraft carriers List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy References External links Official website Story Archive – U.S. Navy – USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) John C. Stennis at globalsecurity.org USS John C. Stennis history at U.S. Carriers This American Life: Somewhere in the Arabian Sea Episode 206 USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74) command histories – Naval History & Heritage Command John C. Stennis on Naval History and Heritage Command Nimitz-class aircraft carriers