Tom Carpenter -- In His Own Words

As a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, former Marine and most senior director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (“SLDN”), the hearing before the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee is a very significant and historic event to me. I am confident it is the beginning of the end of the misguided law known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”.

When candidate Bill Clinton announced to some of my friends in Los Angeles that he would lift the ban on GLB servicemembers, little did he know the firestorm that would erupt during the first months of his administration when he tried to fulfill this pledge. He faced open opposition from the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as leaders of both parties. As Congressional hearings began, the late Tom Stoddard, who was leading the Campaign for Military Service, an organization supporting lifting of the ban, asked me to come to Washington to help lobby Congress. Since the late Sen. Strom Thurmond had appointed me to the Academy, I was asked to meet with his staff and the staff of former Sen. Sam Nunn. This was not a pleasant mission. It was apparent to me, from the comments of these staff members, mostly retired military officers, that the best we could hope for was the compromise proposed by the late Charlie Moskos, which became known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. It was clear to me that this law was bankrupt from its inception for one simple reason- it was contrary to the military’s highest core values of honor and integrity.

In 1996, SLDN’s co-founders, Michelle Beneke and Dixon Osburn asked me to join the Board. I gladly accepted the invitation with the knowledge that the road ahead would be difficult and often painful. SLDN was at that time, as eloquently stated by retired Commander and present Board co-chair Zoe Dunning, the 911 for Servicemembers who ran afoul of this new law. Over the past 15 years SLDN has helped over 8,000 troops. During that same period nearly 12,500 have been discharged under the law and tens of thousands have left the service because they could no longer live a lie. I have met hundreds of these patriots- these are not mere numbers to me, but human beings who have suffered loss of careers and often abandonment by family and friends. Those who were discharged under the law are branded forever by their discharge certificate which states they were fired because of “homosexual conduct”, even though they did nothing more than tell the truth when asked about their sexual orientation. One of my closest friends, also a Naval Academy graduate and former Marine, became so depressed by the loss of his career, he took his own life. They are all casualties of a law that is un-American and must be repealed.

Thankfully, the American people get it. In several recent polls, 75 percent support open and honest service. There has been a sea change since 1993, and now is time for Congress to carry out the will of the people. With our country engaged in two wars and the land forces stretched to the breaking point, we need every patriot who wants to serve their country. The Military Readiness Enhancement Act (HR1246) would repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law. This bill has 143 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives. The hearing this week is the first step in the process of educating members of Congress about why the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” must go. I have great faith in the innate fairness of most of my fellow citizens-including members of Congress. This is their opportunity to right a wrong. If they listen to the compelling testimony about this injustice, I am confident they will find their way to do what is clearly in the best interest of the country we all love- repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law by enacting the Military Readiness Enhancement Act.

-Tom Carpenter

Why Should You Care?

I care deeply about repealing the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ law that prohibits lesbian, gay and bisexual service members from serving openly in the US military. But then, I am just a little biased. I retired from the Air Force last year after a 22 year career and a first-hand view of the impact of serving in the closet. The pretentious duplicity of gays and lesbians pretending not to be gay while the military pretends they don’t know we are serving is absolutely ludicrous and serves no one. Not the gays and lesbians who can’t bring their whole self to work, and not the military that is forced to waste precious resources on the discharges of those who are found out (often by someone else outing them out of retribution). That’s why, once I retired, I volunteered to support the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN). SLDN provides free legal services to service members who get into trouble due to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and they are leading the fight to repeal the failed law.

Maybe you don’t care that 12,500 service members have been discharged since the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law was implemented in 1994. Neither are you impressed that DoD had spent some $400 million in implementing the law. Finally, so what if 24 other nations (including Great Britain) have full open service for their gay and lesbian servicemembers?

I’m guessing that even if you don’t know any gay and lesbian servicemembers, if you are LGBT or a straight ally, you care about equal rights, don’t you? Did you know that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” is the only law in the US that mandates someone be fired for being gay- just for being who they are? Repealing this law is not just a military readiness issue, but also a civil rights issue. Just as the military led the way to abolish racial segregation (by President Truman’s executive order in 1948), it now finds itself on the front lines in the fight to end legal discrimination of the LGBT community. The good news is, that once given the charge; the military can make anything happen. In fact, once mandated to desegregate whites and blacks, integration in the Army took only five years to accomplish. That’s largely due to the nature of military life…superiors issue orders and subordinates follow them or get weeded out. A National Defense Research Institute (RAND) report also found that the military is very capable of changing “how troops behave toward previously excluded (and despised) minority groups, even if underlying attitudes toward those minority groups change very little.” They pointed out that “leadership” is what makes the difference.

Today, there are more than 65,000 LGB service members serving on active duty and the Guard and Reserves today; many of them in critical job skills and, they’ve served in every conflict since the Revolutionary War. There are also over one million gay veterans in the US today

A new study, recently released by the University of California’s Palm Center and conducted by four retired military officers, including the three-star Air Force lieutenant general who was integral to the implementation of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, said that “evidence shows that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly is unlikely to pose any significant risk to morale, good order, discipline or cohesion”. Navy Vice Admiral Jack Shanahan said he was struck by the loss of personal integrity required by individuals to carry out “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

Seventy-five (75) percent of Americans in a new Washington Post–ABC News poll said that gay people who are open about their sexual orientation should be allowed to serve openly, up from 62% in early 2001and 44% in 1993.

HR 1246, the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, has 143 Congressional co-sponsors. This bill would repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and replace it with a policy of non-discrimination in our armed forces.

So, I ask you to care about repealing the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law because it is just the right thing to do, and it can lead the way to providing complete civil rights to our entire LBGT community. The hearing that will take place on Wednesday is historic and a major step in the right direction. It is only the beginning though. It is up to each of us to exercise one of the rights we currently enjoy…freedom of speech, to gain the rest of the rights we are entitled to. Click here to take action and sign SLDN’s petition to Congress telling them to pass the Military Readiness Enhancement Act and click here to join the grass roots effort. Each of us really does have the power to make a difference. Take a stand and make your difference today.

-Linda Thomas