Gays serve in militaries around the world, although several countries (including the U.S. "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy) prohibit service by openly gay soldiers and sailors.
Associated Press (AP), Posted: 1/30/2010, 10:50 AM The Defense Department starts the clock next week on what is expected to be a several-year process in lifting its ban on gays from serving openly in the military. A special investigation into how the ban can be repealed without hurting the morale or readiness of the troops was expected to be announced Tuesday by Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. While the review is likely to take the better part of this year to complete, and even more time to implement, its initiation will advance President Barack Obama's goal of repealing the ban and bring a divisive issue for the military back to the fore. At the White House, officials continued reviewing options to repeal the Clinton-era policy that the president vowed to repeal. The administration still believes that any repeal should start in Congress and have the backing of top military leaders. To that end, Obama and Gates planned a meeting next week to discuss, among other topics, ending "don't ask, don't tell" policies.
Washington Post, Posted: 1/29/2010, 1:20 AM Gay rights groups on Wednesday plan to launch a nationwide campaign to repeal the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy following President Obama's call for a repeal during Wednesday's State of the Union address. "This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are," Obama said. In response, the Human Rights Campaign will launch its “Voices of Honor” campaign on Wednesday, with plans to mobilize veterans and build campaigns in states with lawmakers that will be critical to final votes on a repeal in the House and Senate. “The Commander in Chief sent a clear message tonight that in a time of war, what matters is that our men and women get the job done -- not whether they’re gay or straight,” HRC President Joe Solmonese said Wednesday night. "Our country simply cannot afford this discriminatory law that hurts military readiness by denying patriotic men and women the opportunity to serve," Solmonese said.
Agence France Presse (AFP), Posted: 1/28/2010, 4:22 PM The Pentagon is preparing for a repeal of the ban on gays serving openly in the US military after President Barack Obama renewed his vow to scrap the rule, a spokesman said on Thursday. "The (Defense) department leadership is actively working on an implementation plan in accordance with the president's intent," Colonel Dave Lapan told reporters. "We are working on input... for any possible change," he said, without offering more details. The subject was expected to come up next week when Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the top US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, testify before congressional committees. As a candidate, Obama promised to scrap the policy that requires gays to keep quiet about their sexual orientation or face expulsion. Activists however have criticized him for moving cautiously on the issue since taking office. "This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are," Obama said in his State of the Union address on Wednesday. Obama devoted one sentence to the issue in a passage devoted to US ideals of tolerance and his administration's efforts to bolster civil rights protections. It remained unclear if Obama would try to propose ending the ban -- known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" -- as part of a defense budget request due to be unveiled next week, a move favored by rights groups.
Posted: 1/28/2010, 2:52 PM *VIDEO available after the jump*: President Obama avoided offering details on how he plans to push through repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell one day after he called on Congress to end the policy that prevents gays from serving openly in the military. In response to a question from a student at the University of Tampa, where today's town hall meeting took place, Obama chose instead to focus on pending legislation that would extend domestic partner benefits to the same-sex partners of federal employees. "A basic principle of our Constitution is that if you're obeying the law, if you're following the rules, you should be treated the same, regardless of who you are. I think that principle applies to gay and lesbian couples," the president said in response to cheers from the audience.
Stars and Stripes, Posted: 1/28/2010, 2:43 PM In his first State of the Union address, President Barack Obama spent only two sentences of his 7,000-plus word speech on the issue of gays in the military. Whether that was too much or too little depends on whom you ask. The message — “This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are. It’s the right thing to do.” — comes after a year of promises by the White House to overturn the 16-year-old “don’t ask, don’t tell” law banning homosexuals from serving openly. But so far neither Obama nor Democratic lawmakers have made any significant strides in repealing the law, and still face an uphill battle in making a change during an election year. On Wednesday, Republicans offered virtually no support for the president’s call to action, with only a few offering polite applause. Afterward, many were even more pointed in their opposition. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz. and a member of the House Armed Services Committee, called “don’t ask, don’t tell” a strange priority for Obama given the larger issues facing the country. “The president seems hellbent on forcing his social policy on the backs of our already overburdened troops,” he said.
Washington Post, Posted: 1/27/2010, 1:15 AM An estimated 66,000 gay, lesbian and bisexual people are serving in the U.S. military, roughly 2 percent of all military personnel, according to a report released Tuesday by a gay rights policy center. The figures suggest a slight increase in the number of gays, lesbians and bisexuals in the military, and they provide opponents of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy with fresh data as they lobby the Obama administration for its repeal. Gays, lesbians and bisexuals account for about 13,000 active duty service members, equal to less than 1 percent currently deployed, the report estimated. About 53,000 others serve in the National Guard and reserves, equaling about 3.4 percent. The actual number of gays, lesbians and bisexuals serving in uniform is unknown; the military does not track such figures. The research brief was released by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, a public policy institute that studies sexual orientation law.
New York Times, Posted: 1/26/2010, 11:55 AM The Obama administration has asked the Senate Armed Services Committee to delay hearings on the fate of the military’s controversial “con’t ask, don’t tell” policy, because the president expects to discuss it in Wednesday’s address to Congress, the committee chairman said today. Senator Carl Levin, the Michigan Democrat and chairman of the committee, told reporters that senior Pentagon officials asked him to postpone the hearings, because they do not want to be put in the position of discussing or defending a policy that the White House might abandon. President Obama campaigned on a promise to press Congress to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell,’’ the Clinton-era law that bars gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military. But the plan met with resistance inside the Pentagon, where senior military leaders have been engaged in discussions about whether and how to roll it back. Gay rights advocates have been prodding Mr. Obama to live up to his pledge, and have been eagerly awaiting the Armed Services hearings.
Posted: 7/6/2009, 10:32 AM A sailor found dead earlier this week at California's Camp Pendleton was shot while standing sentry, and a fire was set in an attempt to cover up evidence, the U.S. Navy said. The death of Seaman August Provost of Houston, Texas, is being investigated as a homicide, Capt. Matt Brown told reporters on Thursday. A sailor is in custody in the case, Brown said. Although at least one of Provost's relatives said she believes he was killed because of his sexual orientation and his race, Brown said there was no indication the killing was a hate crime. A U.S. congressman also said on Friday there are indications Provost may have been killed because of his sexual orientation. Provost's aunt, Rose Roy, of Beaumont, Texas, said by telephone on Friday that her nephew had told her he was being harassed because of his sexual orientation and because he was African-American. She described him as bisexual.
Congressional Quarterly, Posted: 7/5/2009, 6:38 PM President Obama may be changing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy addressing gays in the military but the process will be “measured” and deliberate, the nation’s top military officer said Sunday. “I’ve conversations with him about that,” said Adm. Mike Mullen , chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “What I’ve discussed in terms of the future is I think we need to move in a measured way.” Mullen, appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union,” said the current process of carrying out the policy includes making sure “that we’re executing it in the most humane way possible. It’s very clear what president Obama’s intent here is. He intends to see this law change. “We’re at a time where we are fighting two conflicts,” he added. “There’s a great deal of pressure on our forces and their families. And yet, again, the strategic intent is clear.”
Associated Press (AP), Posted: 6/8/2009, 5:15 PM The U.S. Supreme Court has turned down a challenge to the Defense Department policy forbidding gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military, granting a request by the Obama administration. The court said Monday that it will not hear an appeal from former Army Capt. James Pietrangelo II, who was dismissed under the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. The federal appeals court in Boston earlier threw out a lawsuit filed by Pietrangelo and 11 other veterans. He was the only member of that group who asked the high court to rule that the Clinton-era policy is unconstitutional. In court papers, the administration said the appeals court ruled correctly in this case when it found that "don't ask, don't tell" is "rationally related to the government's legitimate interest in military discipline and cohesion."
Politico, Posted: 5/26/2010, 3:01 PM
QUICK LOOK:By MAJ. PETER KEES HAMSTRA & LEIF OHLSON & LT. COM. CRAIG JONES: As openly gay officers with decades of combined service experience in the British, Dutch and Swedish armed forces, we are closely watching U.S. developments around the repeal of "Don't ask, don't tell." We were just in Washington at a Brookings Institution/Palm Center conference, where representatives from the world's militaries discussed this matter. Though we maintain a respect for the American people, their military and their political process, we share a sense of puzzlement — and a sort of shock — at the rhetoric we heard surrounding "Don't ask, don't tell." As Congress prepares to vote on this, we hope our international perspective can be of some value. The U.S. armed forces are the world's most formidable, with an unrivaled might and a readiness to accept worldwide deployments to engage in a range of military conflicts that no other nation views with the same sort of international responsibility. Yet it is also true that U.S. military power depends, in most cases, on an international coalition of partners. Members of Congress don't always seem to appreciate that America's allies are put off in serious ways by the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy. For example, units of our own or other armed forces have refused to deploy in some joint operations with U.S. forces because gay service members would not work with the Americans — for fear of hostile reactions.
Washington Post, Posted: 4/20/2010, 8:03 PM
QUICK LOOK:BY JONATHAN CAPEHART: President Obama flew out to California to help the sagging reelection effort of Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and came face-to-face with frustration over efforts to repeal the ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly in the military. He was interrupted a couple of times during his rah-rah for Boxer, in fact. Now, here's my frustration: These same protesters don't bother to interrupt fundraisers and other events for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) or Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). With Obama out, loud and proud in his support for repeal of "don't ask don't tell," those congressional leaders are the ones who hold the key to it actually happening. And they are content to let Obama take all the heat. Hammering away at Obama on this issue is understandable. During the campaign, he promised to do away with the law that hurts the nation's military effectiveness. (I mean, how effective can the U.S. be in its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and in the war on terror if it's booting desperately needed Arab linguists simply because of who they are?) But I must remind my gay brothers and sisters that Obama is not king. Don't ask don't tell is an act of Congress. And it will take Congress to permanently do away with it. Gay men and lesbians are right to hold Obama's feet to the fire on this. But by continuing to ignore Pelosi and Reid, not only are they giving them a pass the leaders don't deserve, they are also slowing down a resolution to an honorable cause.
Posted: 3/26/2010, 12:06 PM
QUICK LOOK:It's been one year since Lt. Dan Choi came out of the closet very publicly to challenge the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy on gays in the military. An Arab linguist now facing discharge, Choi was back in the headlines last week when he showed up at a Human Rights Campaign rally featuring comedienne Kathy Griffin and, according to some, "hijacked" the event by asking those present to join him for a short two-block walk to the White House, where he handcuffed himself to the fence in a protest of civil disobedience. He spent the night in jail but was back out protesting over the weekend, joining the LGBT contingent in the large immigration rights rally on the National Mall. One year after it all started, Choi went back on Rachel Maddow's MSNBC show to talk about the latest developments in DADT repeal.
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