Must See TV -- Carrier

I am really looking forward to watching the new PBS documentary Carrier starting this weekend, Sunday April 27th for two reasons. First, the filmmakers spent an entire deployment aboard the nuclear aircraft carrier the USS Nimitz and that should be something to see. Second, one of the episodes contains interviews with sailors regarding their attitudes about serving under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and serving with lesbian, gay and bisexual colleagues. This multi-episode documentary appears to cover a large number of issues and I am more than heartened that one of the issues included is this one.

In his blog “The Tattler,” Julian Ayrs gives a great description of the recent premier of the documentary’s first episode in Washington, DC. Apparently, there was a Q&A period after the first episode was shown where “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was raised as a question to the Navy command of the USS Nimitz as well as to the producers of the documentary. It came as no surprise to me that the pointed reaction of the producers was that the situation made them sad. Specifically, that lesbian, gay and bisexual service members – in particular those sailors aboard the USS Nimitz – are “left out in the cold and unable to participate in those moments” when sailors talk about their families and their personal lives.

The enforced silence about such a significant portion of someone’s life is one of the most difficult aspects of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” to get people to understand. I have often heard from self-identified straight people that they do not understand why lesbian, gay and bisexual service members need to talk about their sexual orientations. In reality, most lesbian, gay and bisexual service members don’t want to talk about their sexual orientations. What they do want to be able to do is to share with their friends and colleagues in uniform the little pieces of their lives that their straight counterparts do every day. Something as simple as showing their crewmates a letter from their significant other announcing a new job or new neighbors or posting a picture drawn by their 4 year old in daycare showing a family with two mommies or two daddies. This is the type of information shared on board a ship all the time and it is taken for granted by straight service members. This is not the type of information shared by lesbian, gay and bisexual service members without fear.

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is obsolete, unnecessary and out of touch. No one serving aboard a ship or on a plane or in a tank or Humvee in the desert should have to fear sharing the little tidbits of their personal lives which can make them closer to the service members they work with and rely on daily. I hope the episode of “Carrier” dealing with serving under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” can help to put a face to this incredible strain. I encourage everyone to watch this series and I thank PBS and the producers of this documentary for caring so deeply about our men and women in uniform.

Click here to visit PBS online and find local listings. Click here to read Towleroad.com's interview with series producer Jeff Dupre.

-Kathi Westcott