In 1942, the ban on homosexuals serving in the military was instituted. As society and the military came to be more enlightened about the nature of homosexuality, a redefinition of the policy became necessary. In 1982, the policy was changed to say "a homosexual, or a lesbian in the military seriously impairs the ability of the military services to maintain discipline, good order, and morale." Only in 1994, was the policy was changed, and then only the exclusion of homosexual acts was put into order. The policy has remained the same ever since.
The presence of known homosexuals in the military would destroy teamwork.; or it would until marines are desensitized to homophobia. It is the senseless fear of homosexuals that is the problem. "The presence of known homosexuals may affect teamwork at least until Marines are cured of homophobia." Teamwork is a key facet to success; it would be detrimental to everyone if something were to go wrong because our Marines were not fully focussed on what they were doing. The problem is that many marines live in open squad bays and have to privacy for showers. The fear of a homosexual "looking" can be very offensive to somebody else.
There are many highly important political people who are optimistic about what the future holds for homosexuals. Hillary Clinton said that she disagrees with her husbands "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military. She describes it as a political compromise that has not worked. She would seek to change if elected to the Senate of New York. "I don't believe that it is ultimately the policy that we should have in our military. In 1996 alone, 850 service members were discharged from the military because of their presumed homosexuality- hardly a "don't ask, don't tell" perspective. Vice President Gore stated that Clinton's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military should be abandoned. The policy has not worked in practice, said Gore. A 1997 Pentagon study found unacceptable instances of harassment and inadequate understanding of "don't ask, don't tell" among commanders and even military attorneys. However, it wasn't until recent that each of the armed services began training programs to ensure that the anti-harassment message was conveyed to all members of the military. Local and national gay advocates contend that the probe circumvents the Pentagons "don't ask, don't tell" policy and might be a way of driving homosexuals out of the military. Nevertheless, the Navy denies the accusations, stating the operation aims only at drug trafficking and has never been used to enforce the continuing ban on homosexual activity by service members.
There is also a problem within this problem. In the military, high rank officers are doing absolutely nothing when it comes to verbal abuse. A stunning 85 percent of the people, taken from a 71,500 military based survey, said they believed verbal abuse was tolerated within those ranks. These officers often witnessed acts of harassment but they did nothing to stop them. There are policies that explicitly prohibit harassment based on sexual orientation. In order for homosexuals to be fully excepted in our society, people need to except that fact that they are the same as everyone else. Heterosexual service members are not too eager to let known homosexuals into the military. Members of the military were upset at the legalization of homosexuals serving in the military. The military, by and large, has always remained opposed to the lifting of the ban on homosexuals.
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HOMOSEXUALS AND U.S. MILITARY POLICY: CURRENT ISSUES Background and analysis on discharge statistic: issues, lehal challenges, campus policies, homosexuals and marriages, security clearances, and most recent enactments.
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ALL READ: PEOPLE WHO HATE HOMOSEXUALS You may find God judging you one day, regarding your hatred and rightiousness. Homosexuality is not a choice. Why would one choose to go through the pain that most homosexuals endure? GAYS DON'T BELONG IN THE MILITARY The issue of homosexuals serving openly in the military is shaping up to be one of the most contentious issues in this year's recent presidential campaign. TOP MILITARY OFFICERS FAVOR GAYS STAYING IN CLOSET Members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff are quietly promoting a policy that would discourage homosexuals from openly declaring their sexual orientation. |
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SERVICE MEMBERS LEGAL DEFENSE NETWORK This organization was set up to assists men and women targeted by the military's policy on homosexuals, and offer legal advice, representation and more. SERVICE ACADEMY GAY AND LESBIAN ALUMNI An organization for gay and lesbian graduates
of West Point, the Naval Academy, Coast Guard Academy, Air Force
Academy, and Merchant Marine Academy. Would
you like to know more? |
