Ending 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell': Discrimination Doesn't Deserve Federal Support
Daily Camera
By Erika Stutzman
May 4, 2008

"It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin."
-- Executive Order 9981, signed by President Harry S. Truman, 1948

Celebrating its 15th birthday this year is a confusing little policy with the catchy little name, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

Widely viewed as a compromise between then President Bill Clinton and the U.S. military, which had a longstanding ban on gays, the policy is designed to let gays serve as long as no one finds out they're gay.

Since 1993, more than 12,000 servicemen and women have been dismissed under the policy. According to UCLA's Williams Institute, there are nearly 15,000 gay veterans in Colorado.

The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is dedicated to ending the law that bans gays and lesbians from open service.

"Open" is where things get tricky, says Aubrey Sarvis, director of the network and a gay veteran. "It's arbitrary," he said. Sometimes, "open" might mean you go out to the press and declare you're a homosexual. Or it may mean that you've secretly sent an e-mail to a boyfriend at home, only to be outed by a fellow soldier who accessed your computer.

"The irony is that this 'compromise' is the only federal law that gives the government the right to discriminate," Sarvis said.

A bill before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee -- with 142 co-sponsors including Mark Udall (D-Eldorado Springs) -- is expected to have a hearing this summer. But even its supporters admit that it will die without broad bi-partisan support, which it doesn't have now.

Most of our allies allow gays in the military, many -- like Britain, Israel, Canada and Switzerland -- with clear provisions stating that gays are legally protected from harassment.

Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have stated they want the law repealed; Sen. John McCain has said it would be a "terrific mistake" to "even reopen the issue."

It's hard to imagine that Truman desegregating the armed forces 60 years ago was such a bold move, given that minorities had been fighting for the United States since before its founding -- but it was.

And it's hard to imagine that ending "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" would be so controversial today -- but it is. Although national polls have shown the majority of Americans think gays and lesbians should be able to serve openly in the military, there is strong resistance within the military itself.

But the U.S. military faced -- and eventually conquered -- the same resistance in its ranks over racial desegregation. The government should end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."