Same sex-marriage is under friendly fire in the military. Under the DADT policy it prohibits gay and lesbian couples from serving openly in the military. In 1993 the Clinton presidency came up with this legislation to make a compromise between those who were already serving in the military and social conservatives in a campaign promise. Ann Persky, Journalist for the American Bar association writes The DADT policy states that homosexual behavior is grounds for dismissal; over 12,000 service members have been discharged. Pentagon statistics indicate that it is primarily applied to women.” In 2007, women made up 14% of Army personnel and 46% of those discharged under the policy. In the Air force, women accounted for 20% of personnel and 49% of those discharged under the policy. (P.18-20)” The Don’t ask, Don’t tell policy contains gaps in regulation, violates privacy rights, and generational differences.
The DADT policy has gaps in how it is regulated, meaning it has loop holes in it based upon someone’s specialty in the military or time frame upon which it was enforced. An example of this would be if a soldier was ousted prior to the policy, and was a weapon specialist. In that particular case the solider would be allowed to continue full active duty service, and receive full benefits after enlistment. Nathaniel Frank, senior researcher at the Palm center in Santa Barbara California states the DADT policy was destined to fail for it was created out of prejudice, not actual cause. The law has many short falls including in the current time frame were some soldiers serve openly in Iraq and Afghanistan.(P14) There are two particular court cases involving two different women that show how uneven the DADT regulation truly is. The first case is Margarethe Cammenmeher and the second case is Witt vs. Air force. In the case of Cammenmeher a judge found in 1994 that the Don’t ask, Don’t tell policy was unconstitutional and Cammenmeher then went back to serve until 1997 (About-face, P.26-29). Margaret Witt’s case was different in a sense that she was ousted by her former partner to her superior officer. Witt was then discharged from the air force in 2004 Witt’s discharge was upheld by the federal courts in July 2006 (P.26-29). She was not eligible for any of her military retirement benefits after having served 18 years. In the ruling the federal court stated it was unclear whether or not her sexual orientation affected her abilities to do her job under DADT. (p.26-29) Witt’s position in the military brought up doubt in the judge’s ruling and questioned the military’s dismissal laws.
The Don’t ask, don’t tell policy violates privacy laws and discriminates upon the people reviewed under this policy. In order for the military to dismiss a soldier under the policy they have to evaluate the soldier’s personal sex life. This was the key argument in the 2003 case Lawrence V. Texas, which highlighted the issues of privacy regarding sexual conduct in the military under DADT. (Conn Corrigan, P.22). In doing this it becomes a form of discrimination against the soldiers that are willing to serve in the armed forces. In return this could open the door way for other forms of discrimination based upon someone’s sex, religious background, and race. In addition to bases of discrimination they could find other things in one’s personal life style to dismiss them upon.
The DADT policy is out dated for the times that we currently live in. Sixteen years have passed since the policy was established in 1993. Since then we as a country have grown and changed in many ways, and have started to accept things out of the norm. Most soldiers even though they may be uncomfortable serving with someone that is gay or lesbian, in my opinion soldiers often could care less regarding someone’s sexual orientation. What matters the most to soldiers serving overseas is that their fellow comrades can do their job effectively. Where the DADT policy holds merit is in the minds of those in higher rank positions and who have been in the service the longest.
In spite our progresses over the years we still discriminate against people who we find different from ourselves. Rather it is from their origins, sexual orientation, religion or color it will always be an issue if we choose to see it that way. The DADT policy is a law that discriminates against sexual orientation created sixteen years ago and is often unevenly enforced. So we need to dismiss it to close the gaps we as a nation face each day. It is time for Americans and our armed forces to judge someone by their character rather than their personal choices in life. Allowing the gay and lesbian soldiers to serve openly will in return help strengthen the trust of their fellow soldiers.
Corrigan, Conn, and Hannah Wareham...”Ma’am, Would You Care for Some Facts With That? “Gay & Lesbian Studies/issues magazine (09 Sep.2008):22-22. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Northern Virginia Community College, Reston, VA.24 June 2009
Battling the Military Ban.” Nathaniel Frank (Mar. 2009):14-14. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO Northern Virginia Community College, Reston, VA.24 June 2009
Murphy, Tim.”About-Face.”Advocate (26 Aug.2008):26-29. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Northern Virginia Community College, Reston, VA.24 June 2009
Persky, Anna Stolley. “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Don’t Work?.” American Bar Association Journal 94.10 (Oct.2008): 18-20. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Northern Virginia Community College, Reston, VA. 24 June2009
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