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James Webb was NASA’s second administrator. He chaired the agency from 1961 to 1968, at a crucial time for the early days of space exploration. But in recent years his legacy has been called into question
NASA has announced that it will not rename the James Webb Telescope until its launch in December, despite a petition against honoring a space pioneer who some now claim to be homophobic.
Webb, who died in 1992 at the age of 85, was the second administrator in NASA history, taking over at the behest of John F. Kennedy in 1961.
He ran the agency until 1968 and was instrumental in the Apollo programs that would see, the year after his departure, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walk on the moon.
In 2002, the agency announced that its new $ 10 billion telescope – slated for launch in December 2021 – would bear its name.
Yet in recent years the decision has drawn criticism, and a petition this year to rename it has received 1,200 signatures.
Organizers accuse Webb of being homophobic, due to his role in the 1963 dismissal of a gay NASA employee.
Questions were also asked about his participation in a “Lavender Fear” from 1950 to 1952, while in the State Department, and 91 homosexuals were “purged.”
But on September 30, NASA administrator Bill Nelson said they decided not to rename the telescope.
“We have not found any evidence at this time to justify changing the name of the James Webb Space Telescope,” he told NPR.
The James Webb telescope is seen being assembled for the first time. $ 10 billion telescope, 100 times more powerful than Hubble, to launch in December
The James Webb telescope is so large that it will need to be folded inside the rocket and then unfolded once in orbit
Technicians and scientists discover one of the Webb Telescope’s first two flight mirrors in the clean room at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland
Nelson’s decision angered those who campaigned for the renaming of the $ 10 billion telescope, described by NASA as the largest, most powerful and complex space telescope ever built and launched in space.
“This will fundamentally change our understanding of the universe,” promises NASA.
The telescope will go into orbit on December 18 after 25 years of work by 1,200 scientists, technicians and engineers from 14 countries.
Webb is seen standing next to Kennedy as he presents the Distinguished Federal Public Service Medal to Dr. Robert R. Gilruth, Director of the Manned Spacecraft Center. Astronauts Alan Shepard (far left) and John Glenn (second from left) watch
Webb is pictured at a 1962 NASA press conference in Washington DC
James Webb’s role in the 1950s “Lavender Scare” and the 1963 dismissal of an employee who was arrested by the DC “Morals Squad”
Webb’s importance to the US space program is indisputable, but his attitudes have sparked significant debate.
His critics say he shouldn’t be honored when so many pioneers are being ignored – especially women and people of color. His supporters say he was a product of his time, and his actual involvement in affairs associated with him is disputed.
Webb was in the State Department during the so-called “Lavender Scare,” when 91 gay men were forced to quit their jobs.
At the time, it was illegal for homosexuals to serve in the public service, and being homosexual was considered amoral. Homosexuals were often seen as a target for blackmail.
Advocates for Webb say there is no evidence of his actions during the Lavender Panic.
Webb speaks at the White House in 1963, with Kennedy to his right and Lyndon B. Johnson to his left
Webb is also criticized for presiding over the 1963 dismissal of Clifford L. Norton, who was arrested by the Washington DC Morals Squad.
NASA accused him of “immoral, indecent and disgraceful conduct”.
But Webb supporters say that as an agency administrator, he was not allegedly involved in firing a low-level budget administrator.
Additionally, when Norton successfully sued for wrongful dismissal in 1969, Webb was not named in the case at all.
It is considered an upgrade of the Hubble Telescope and is 100 times more powerful.
It’s so large that it will bend, origami-like, to fit in the rocket, according to NASA, and unwind “like a transformer” in space.
Webb’s actions have been the subject of intense debate.
A lawyer by training, he was Undersecretary of State at the State Department in the 1950s, when there were concerns that homosexuals were “deviants” who could be exposed to blackmail because they were prohibited from service. in the public service.
Under President Harry Truman’s leadership, a gay purge was carried out known as Lavender Scare and 91 State Department employees lost their jobs.
Yet supporters of Webb – including the team behind Chasing the Moon, the PBS documentary – point out that there was no evidence of Webb’s direct involvement in the Lavender Scare.
Webb was also in the State Department when the idea of psychological warfare was introduced.
A more troubling case is that of Clifford L. Norton, a NASA budget administrator, who was arrested by the Washington DC “Morals Squad” in 1963, and subsequently fired for his homosexuality.
NASA accused him of “immoral, indecent and disgraceful conduct”.
Norton sued in 1969 and won a landmark case, which banned gay men from serving in the public service.
Webb was the administrator of NASA at the time and was therefore held responsible for the shooting.
Still, his supporters say he would not have been involved in firing a low-level employee like Norton.
Additionally, the Chasing the Moon team points out that Webb’s name was never mentioned in the 1969 case, which was brought against Civil Service Chief John Macy.
The organizers of the petition against Webb’s honor with the telescope were angered by the decision to go ahead.
“NASA decided to keep the name (chosen by a former NASA administrator to … change the tradition of naming space telescopes after scientists and honoring another administrator?),” Said Sarah Tuttle, a astrophysicist who created the petition with three others.
“This morning, I am particularly heartbroken because I am spending the next two days attending the NASA National Space Grants Meeting.
“What a slap in the face, the day this meeting started, to tell people, ‘Thank you for raising the minorities’ ranks – We don’t really care about the impact of our decisions on them. Not even enough to answer their questions. “
NASA is counting on cowardice and poor PR technique to disclose it will not rename JWST, after a career administrator who has overseen homophobic persecution and the development of psychological warfare, ignoring demand review of 1,200 astronomers. ”
The astronauts known as the Mercury Seven are seen in 1964 listening to Webb on the podium. From left to right: Deke Slayton, Wally Schirra, Donald Cooper, Scott Carpenter, Gus Grisson, John Glenn, Alan Shepard
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