Forced into closet by nation they serve
Wednesday in Annapolis, the United States Naval Academy welcomed the most racially and ethnically diverse class in its history: 14 percent Hispanic, 10 percent African-American - and perhaps 2 percent to 3 percent homosexual. I added that last part. No one knows how many plebes are gay or lesbian, but studies have placed the percentage of homosexual men and women serving this nation’s military in that range, with some 65,000 said to be on active duty. It’s a fairly safe assumption that a small percentage of plebes will have to keep their sexuality a secret if they want to graduate from the academy and, after that, fulfill their obligations to the country.
That’s what “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” demands.
It forces men and women serving the nation to lie about their sexual orientation or risk discharge. An estimated 13,000 men and women have been discharged under Don’t Ask in the 16 years since the law took effect. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network says 277 of the discharges have occurred since Barack Obama became president. As a candidate, Mr. Obama pledged to end Don’t Ask. Last week, the he reiterated his support for eventual repeal of the law by Congress.
Skip Muller was a midshipman at the Naval Academy at the start of the Don’t Ask era. Prior to entering the academy, he had studied Russian at the Defense Language Institute in California.
“As an 18-year-old I struggled to understand my own sexuality, while all around me I saw people actively targeted, investigated and ejected from the military because they were homosexual,” Mr. Mullen writes on the Web site of USNAOut, an organization of gay Naval Academy alumni. “I forced myself to date women and live the lie that consumed and exhausted me for years to come.”
After graduating from the academy in 1996, Mr. Muller served two tours aboard destroyers, the second cut short by honorable discharge under Don’t Ask. See
Forced into closet by nation they serve
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Day of Silence observed
(Washington) Hundreds of thousands of students at thousands of schools nationwide are taking part in the National Day of Silence to bring attention to anti-LGBT name-calling, bullying and harassment.
Students from more than 8,000 middle schools, high schools and colleges registered as participants in last year’s Day of Silence. This year …
Tags: Bullying And Harassment, Colleges, Day Of Silence, High Schools, Hundreds Of Thousands, Middle Schools, National Day Of Silence, Nationwide, ParticipantsGay group protests Vatican stand on rights
(New York City) A nondenominational religious LGBT rights group will hold a two-day vigil outside the Vatican’s mission to the United Nations to protest its refusal to sign the United Nations Declaration on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.
The April 22-23 vigil is being organized by Soulforce which regularly demonstrates at colleges …
Tags: Colleges, Gay Group, gay rights, Gender Identity, Group Protests, Lgbt Rights, New York City, Sexual Orientation, Soulforce, United Nations, Vatican, Vatican City, VigilReport: Number of companies protecting trans workers continues to grow
(Washington) A new report on workplace equality shows rapid expansion of protections for transgender workers in the private sector over the past decade.
The State of the Workplace report found that 60 of the Fortune 100 largest businesses and nearly half of the nation’s largest law firms and colleges now prohibit …
Tags: Colleges, Decade, Fortune 100, Law Firms, Private Sector, Rapid Expansion, Transgender Workers, Workplace EqualityMore anti-gay attacks on Ga. universities
The furor over “queer theory” and other reseach at Georgia’s public colleges and univesities has grown since this week’s issue of Southern Voice went to press, and shows disturbing signs of developing into a full-fledged witch hunt.
What started with comments from state Rep. Calvin Hill (see my editorial on that here) now includes Rep. Charlice Byrd, who spoke from the General Assembly well late this week to denounce “a major misuse of the state university system’s budget.”
“Did you know that the state universities offer such special interest classes and expertise on “Male prostitution”, “Queer Theory,” and “Oral Sex”? Yes, ladies and gentlemen… you heard right,” Byrd said, repeating Hill’s misunderstanding of topics listed in an “expert guide” distributed by Georgia State University.
See More anti-gay attacks on Ga. universities
Sovo.com, GA
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Poll: Connecticut voters back gay marriage
A slim majority of Connecticut voters support a recent state Supreme Court ruling to allow same-sex couples to marry, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.
The poll also gave U.S. Sens. Joseph Lieberman and Christopher Dodd their lowest approval ratings in the survey’s history.
Fifty-two percent said they support the Supreme Court’s gay marriage ruling, while 39 percent oppose it. Nine percent are undecided.
But voters strongly oppose amending Connecticut’s constitution to ban same-sex marriage, 61 percent to 33 percent. That had been one of the last hopes for opponents of gay marriage.
See Poll: Connecticut voters back gay marriage
Newsday, NY
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Transgender teen decries hate at schools
About 25 protesters braved a brisk wind and fumes from cars zipping past Friday afternoon to show their support for Blake Williams, a transgender teen who says he dropped out of Aspen Valley High School because he didn’t feel safe.
Williams, 18, said he’s endured bullying and verbal abuse at three schools - two in Academy School District 20 and one charter school - in the two years since he began transitioning from female to male. He called on District 20 and other district administrations to begin training staff on the issues facing Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students.
“We need to be protected from the hate, the bullying,” he said. “We want to be treated as human beings.”
Others at the rally across from Aspen Valley, an alternative school in D-20, said the education community, including colleges, must work harder to address issues that face LGBT students.
See Transgender teen decries hate at schools
Colorado Springs Gazette, CO
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