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The New York Times
Opinion
Equality in the
Military
EDITORIAL,
nytimes.com from the Web, February 3, 2010
History was made on Capitol Hill on
Tuesday. More than 16 years after their predecessors helped impose the
odious “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, the nation’s two top defense officials
called on Congress to repeal the law that bans gay men and lesbians from serving
openly in the military. The principled courage of the defense secretary
and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is a major step forward for civil
rights.
Their action leaves no further excuse for Republican lawmakers to go on
supporting this discrimination. President Obama must not let the opponents
of repeal, who are already mobilizing, keep this terribly unjust law on the
books.
“Don’t ask, don’t tell” was passed by Congress in 1993, with the support of Les
Aspin, who then was the secretary of defense, and Gen. Colin Powell, who was the
chairman of the Joint Chiefs. It compelled gay men and lesbians to hide
who they are and to live in fear of being reported. Many thousands of men
and women have been drummed out of the armed forces under this law.
Critics argue that the presence of gay service members makes the military less
unified and effective. There is strong evidence that this is not so,
including the experiences of nations, such as Canada and Britain, where gays
serve openly. A policy of driving out good and talented people — including
ones with much-needed skills in Arabic, Farsi, and other languages — makes the
military less effective.
At Tuesday’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Robert Gates, the
secretary of defense, and Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, made a clear commitment to end “don’t ask, don’t tell” — following up on
the promise President Obama made in his State of the Union address. The
question, Mr. Gates said, “is not whether the military prepares to make this
change, but how we best prepare for it.” He said, however, that more time
will be needed to work out how to change the policy.
While the policy is being reviewed by the Pentagon’s top lawyer and the
commander of the United States Army in Europe, Mr. Gates said the existing law
will be carried out in a “more humane and fair manner.” One welcome change
would be a decision by the military to no longer aggressively pursue discharge
cases against people whose sexuality is revealed by third parties, including
jilted romantic partners.
Since “don’t ask, don’t tell” is a federal law, the Obama administration will
have to work to get Congress to repeal it. There will be considerable
opposition. Senator John McCain, a Republican of Arizona, declared his
opposition on Tuesday. Representative John Boehner, the leader of the House
Republicans, indicated earlier that with two wars under way it was not the right
time to change the policy.
In fact, it is an ideal time. The armed forces need every qualified person
who wants to serve. Polls show that Americans broadly support repealing
the law. President Obama has spoken out forcefully for jettisoning the
policy, and his party controls both houses of Congress. The armed forces
have evolved. Gen. John Shalikashvili, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, recently called for a repeal, declaring that “as a nation built on the
principle of equality, we should recognize and welcome change that will build a
stronger, more cohesive military.”
The United States has traveled far since 1993 on gay rights. It is ready
for a military built on a commitment to equal rights for all.
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