Most lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr service members are still reluctant to disclose their sexual orientatn or inty.
Contents:
- I THOUGHT I COULD SERVE AS AN OPENLY GAY MAN THE ARMY. THEN CAME THE DEATH THREATS.
- US ARY LIFTS BAN ON OPENLY GAY TROOPS
- I'M A GAY ARMY OFFICER—QUEER TROOPS MT FIGHT BACK
- CAN GAY PEOPLE JO THE ARY?
I THOUGHT I COULD SERVE AS AN OPENLY GAY MAN THE ARMY. THEN CAME THE DEATH THREATS.
* can gay people join the army *
In rponse, and apparently to monstrate his petency his assigned posn, the nonmissned officer had taken upon himself to approach the person he nsired cled toward mtg a siar offense the future: me, the only openly gay soldier my un. Together we approached our un’s learship, where she sisted that the ments had stemmed om the reprentative’s own homophobic feelgs and remend that he be reprimand and removed om his posn as the un’s sexual harassment watchdog. But by then was hard to ignore the anxiety I felt durg required social activi — “mandatory fun, ” as ’s lled the ary — or the tensn om my fellow moment I cid to bee a soldier and the moment I chose to live openly as a gay man occurred so closely time that ’s hard to remember which me first.
US ARY LIFTS BAN ON OPENLY GAY TROOPS
Barack Obama wel repeal of 18-year 'don't ask, don't tell' policy as gay lobby groups across US celebrate * can gay people join the army *
It was still four months before the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell, ” a double-edged policy prohibg askg any service member about his or her sexualy while enforcg a ban on openly gay service members.
I'M A GAY ARMY OFFICER—QUEER TROOPS MT FIGHT BACK
While the LGBT ary muny has seen creased reprentatn the past , stris are still beg ma to improve acceptance, tegratn and health for gay and transgenr service members. * can gay people join the army *
Mike and Abe were to mentor me on how to survive as a gay serviceman. As long as gay soldiers kept their mouths shut, the burn of proof fell on those makg the accatns. A uple were more elaborate: tailed scriptns of what might happen to me if I was ught alone, and proclamatns about the wrongns of gays the ary.
There are moments when feels wrong to claim my stat as a veteran; as if beg gay ma me ls of a soldier and somehow validated my service.
CAN GAY PEOPLE JO THE ARY?
Every memory evok an emotn: rage that I had to serve wh a nstant sense of fear of my fellow soldiers; paralyzg sadns for those who endured ab worse than I n know; and, the worst, guilt over the service members — gay or straight or transgenr — who died while servg the ary while my body is still whole. Five years ago, the Uned Stat ary ma history by officially allowg gay and lbian people to openly serve the armed forc whout fear of beg kicked out due to their sexual orientatn.