Don’t Ask Don’t Tell - The Unfinished Story

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Many believe the battle is over, and LGBT people won the fight for the right to serve equally alongside all service members in the U.S. military. But the story is unfinished.

After years of lobbying by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) and a host of allied organizations, congressional leaders last year secured passage of a stand-alone bill repealing the 1993 law called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) and President Obama signed the repeal law in December 2010. In July this year, he, along with the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, certified that all of the services were ready to implement the new policies and regulations "consistent with the standards of military readiness, military effectiveness, unit cohesion and recruiting and retention of the Armed Forces." Their signatures started a 60-day clock ticking until "full implementation" goes into effect on Tuesday, September 20 of this year.

So what's left? According to retired Colonel Stewart Bornhoft, "plenty!" A highly-decorated West Pointer, he served for more than 26 years on active duty, commanded soldiers in combat during two tours in Vietnam, taught at the U.S. Military Academy, is former Chair of the Military Advisory Council of SLDN and a member of Knights Out, the gay/straight alliance of West Pointers.

Colonel, it seems like gays can now serve in the military. Doesn't that mean we achieved our goals?

Far from it. A lot of progress has been made, especially in the last year, but the goal has never been just to serve in the military. Gays have served in the military since the Revolutionary War and in every war and conflict since. Reliable estimates report 66,000 LGB servicemembers serve in our armed forces today. The question isn't whether they should, but under what conditions.

So what conditions have changed?

DADT forced people to lie. Deceptive statements and half-truths are not truth! Courts require that we tell "the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," asking a service member to blur truth is asking them to lie. For example, changing "him" to "her" or vice versa in reference to ones relationships to disguise the reality of one's sexual preference, is a deception. DADT was repugnant to American values-truth, justice and equality. On Tuesday, September 20, the implementation of the repeal will permit service members to be truthful about their orientations without risking their careers.

So after Tuesday, September 20, conditions will allow honest and open service. Isn't that enough?

NO! An executive order prohibiting discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation needs to be issued by the President, our Commander in Chief, so we don't just turn the calendar back to 1992. His order should provide LGB troops with the same recourse outside their chain of command, as others are allowed if they are experiencing harassment or discrimination. Being able to do your job without fear of being fired for your orientation is a start and welcome change from past witch hunts, but it doesn't provide full equal treatment. Compared to their counterparts, LGB servicemembers still don't have benefit parity or equal status on a par with others of equal rank and station. We still need military health care for LGB dependents and spouses, access to commissary and exchange services, assistance during deployment, etc. Equal treatment is still an unrealized goal.

What about the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Doesn't it prohibit parity?

DOMA is definitely an impediment but not a show-stopper, especially regarding servicemembers whose marriages are recognized at the state level. The current administration expanded benefits for same-sex couples elsewhere in the federal government, now the White House has to push hard to do that in the Department of Defense (DOD).

How will repeal of DADT impact DOMA?

Repeal of DADT is a wedge issue. Many believe they've never met a gay person and have uninformed negative stereotyped images of them. As more citizens encounter open LGB servicemembers, fears born of myth will give way to the reality that we're fellow Americans struggling with the same issues and challenges to achieve common goals. We seek the same sense of community, opportunity, security and hope for ourselves and loved ones as anyone. Once focus is on our common interests, any perceived threat and falsely preconceived notions can be dispelled. Among the nation's most respected citizens are LGB civilians and military personnel. Allowing them to serve their country and communities honestly will expose the destructive, irrational generating myths that DADT and DOMA falsely perpetuate.

Members of the armed forces are one of the most respected groups in the nation. When civilians expand their interaction with openly serving members, public opinion will be swayed in the direction of equal and fair treatment.

Colonel, you sound cautiously optimistic.

Yes, but not delusional-progress is not permanent- like liberty itself, equality is not given to everyone. Rights must be won and then defended. Laws changed that make progress, can be changed back again. The repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is another chapter in the book of equality. It is progress beyond the "don't even think about it" chapter that existed prior to 1993. And, we still need to address the "T"part of the LGBT community. And the passages ensuring non-discrimination, benefit parity and marriage equality at the Federal level have yet to be written-it remains an unfinished story.

There is reason for cautious and patient optimism. American democracy is a self-righting process encouraged by reason and impeded by emotion to form the more perfect union our forefathers intended!

As Colonel Bornhoft notes, a sameness of purpose and desire for happiness, security, love, community and well being unite us as a nation. Conversely, differences real and perceived, divide in fear and ignorance the sense of equality and pursuit of happiness our founding fathers' envisioned as every citizen's right. Woven into the fabric of a perpetual evolutionary cloth, our maturing democracy has evolved to set aside notions of rights being based on gender, race, religion, philosophy, ideology, age, station and now, sexual orientation. These United States of America do indeed evolve to form the more perfect union at the pace of a snail on a slippery slope.

Quoting information provided by Marine Headquarters,"The Pentagon is expected to spend the next 60 days preparing the troops for the change, and ironing out legal and technical details, including how it will affect housing, military transfers and other health and social benefits.

In most cases, the guidelines require that gays and lesbians be treated like any other member of the military. There will be differences, however. Same sex partners will not get the same housing and other benefits as married couples. Instead, they are more likely to be treated like unmarried couples. One of the thornier issues is gay marriage. An initial move by the Navy earlier this year to train chaplains about same-sex civil unions in states where they are legal was shelved after more than five dozen Congress members objected.

The training, lawmakers told Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, violated the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act ( DOMA) by appearing to recognize and support same-sex marriages."