Whether they’re asking, telling or keeping quiet about their sexuality, there is no question that U.S. gays and lesbians are serving their country. According to the Urban Institute, the number of LGBT veterans topped one million several years ago, and there are currently an estimated more than 36,000 gays and lesbians serving in active duty.
Frequently, the infamous ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy is a centerpiece in discussions about LGBTs in the military, and recently, Lt. Dan Choi is at the crux of that policy debate. Choi is a Gay New York National Guard officer and West Point graduate who publicly announced his sexuality and now must leave the service. In a parallel debate, LGBT leaders and activists have been pressuring Obama over the past few months, asking him to keep his campaign promise to repeal ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ The Courage Campaign is combining the issues, spearheading an effort to collect signatures to be attached to a letter to President Obama on the 4th of July, asking the Commander in Chief to make good by holding up Choi as an example of why the policy is broken. Defense secretary Robert Gates has gone on record saying he wants the expulsion policy softened.
However, LGBT soldiers, and their families, face issues that reach far beyond that presidential policy. While ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ admittedly sets the tone for attitudes toward gays and lesbians in the military, there is still serious danger in active duty, and repealing the policy would not suddenly guarantee safety. A gay soldier at Camp Pendleton was murdered just this week. The body of 29-year-old August Provost was found in a guard shack at the Naval Base. There is very little in the way of official statements about the crime at this time, but Provost was apparently open about his sexuality and at least one politician is on record saying this could have been a hate crime.
The currente climate of LGBTs in the military may appear bleak.
But it’s important to remember that progress is ongoing. For the first time, a U.S. Military Academy LGBT alumni group marched openly and officially in a San Fransisco gay pride parade. When Knights Out marched, at least one member of the pack was able to adjust his focus.
“I reflected on the camaraderie of my peers, the love and enthusiasm of the crowd, my uniformed service to my country, our successes since Stonewall in 1969 and the long road ahead until GLBT Americans are treated equally. The blood we gay veterans have shed for America is just as red, our love of country just as deep as any others. And maybe, if you watched closely as I marched up Market Street with my shipmates, you might have seen the tell-tale flash of a tear in my eye as I silently thanked all the men and women, gay and straight, who gave their lives so I could march in a parade – out, proud and free, in the Sunday morning sunlight.”
