Don't Ask Don't Tell Essay

In the most publicized gay bashing, the dead body of Adam R. Schindler Jr., an American naval radioman, was found battered and disfigured in a public toilet in a park in Japan where he had been serving [Sterngold]. After revealing his homosexuality to his peers in the army, he had been left unrecognizably mutilated and beaten to death. In response, in 1993, the Clinton administration initiated “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” [DADT] which meant that military officers could not investigate a soldier’s sexual preference without reason and a soldier should not voluntarily disclose it [McGowan 4]. Historically, the US military had never directly banned gays, only their actions of sodomy, but a change occurred during the World Wars after the Christian

In the essay “Why gays shouldn’t serve” by David Horowitz he states that “Don’t ask, Don’t Tell policy is a way of containing the destructive force of sex on a combat capability called Unit Cohesion. (354)” This controversial topic has surfaced more and more recently because Barack Obama wanted to let all people serve in the military, regardless of their sexual orientation. “More than 1,000 retired flag and general officers have joined us in signing an open letter to President Obama and Congress, repeal of this law would prompt many dedicated people to leave the military (James J. Lindsay).” There are multiple points you could focus on when trying to explain your point on why gays or lesbians should not serve in the military. The first

II.By listening to a brief history of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy you will gain further knowledge of where we have come since the last 60 years

The issue of gays in the military has been controversial in the United States for many decades. Over these decades there have been many different proposals as to what approach to take in order to handle the situation of homosexuals in the military. However, in 1992 when Bill Clinton was running for President of the United States, he made a promise to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military if he was elected (Washington Post). Bill Clinton followed through with his promise, and in December 1993 he instituted “a defense directive that military applicants should not to be asked about their sexual orientation” (Washington Post). This is now known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was the result

Many homosexuals that served in the Military prior to 2015 had to hide who they were and their loved ones throughout their career. They were forbidden to get married and receive the same benefits as their heterosexual

The ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy is a major policy of the armed forces of the United States, and allows a number of people to serve their country. This policy restricts the United States armed forces from discovering gays, lesbians, and bisexuals. The ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy has, in a way, limited homosexuals from completely fulfilling their military duties by forcing them to serve in the military silent about their personal lives. The policy is a violation of equal rights, forces homosexuals to violate the military code of honor, and causes disputes among fellow soldiers and should be repealed.

1942 - Military psychiatrists warn that "psychopathic personality disorders" make homosexual individuals unfit to fight. The military issues the first formal regulations to list homosexuality as an excludable characteristic. Those in the military identified as homosexuals can be discharged and denied veterans benefits.

The Don’t Ask Don’t tell act which prevented openly gay and lesbians from serving in the United States Armed forces was placed into law on December 21st, 1993. It states that the military cannot discriminate against any gay, lesbian or bisexual person as long as they are discreet about their sexuality. They believed that any persons showing or acting in homosexual behavior would go against strict military moral codes and policy. However on September 20th, 2011 the Don’t ask Don’t Tell was repealed because the government felt it was discriminatory against homosexuals. I agree that openly gay and lesbians should able to serve in the military because nobody should have to hide who they are in order to serve and

According to the opposing group, the presence of LGBT people in the military undermines the trust among soldiers and can reduce the overall effectiveness of the military. While they think all who want to serve the military should, they also think not all of them are able to. One says there are certain qualifications and expectations in the military and if you are transitioning or

Gay people have not always been barred from military service, and in fact, have served in the nation's wars throughout its history. The military's official stance toward gays and lesbians has evolved over time, often in tandem with social change. In the 1920's and 1930's, homosexuality was treated as a criminal offense, punishable by imprisonment. That attitude began to change in the early 1940's,

In 1999, more than 1,000 men and women were discharged from military service due to their sexuality. That number has actually decreased compared to recent years. (Suro NP) Homosexuals were purged from federal employment in 1950, with Bill Clinton updating that policy in 1993 by adding the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue” policy. (Deicher 176) This policy doesn’t work and needs to either be updated again or the ban against homosexuals lifted. Gays should be allowed to fight for the military for employment reasons, the right to fight for one’s country, and because they are no different from anyone else. The fact of the matter is that not even experts can argue in favor of keeping the

The way people ultimately view homosexuality, whether in religion, politics or modern popular culture, is all determined by traditional or changing points of view. This essay will discuss mainly liberal and conservative Christian interpretations of the Bible, including many verses that may support or condemn homosexuality. It will also discuss the political views and laws against same-sex marriage and the social activism in the homosexual community. This is all about view points and it has many conflicting views and arguments.

A society is only as equitable as the treatment accorded its most vulnerable members. Therefore, discrimination against anyone based on his or her sexual orientation is a clear and incurable symptom of an unjust society. For example, should someone?s sexual orientation be grounds for restricting their rights? (Daniel C. Palm) The impartial answer would of course be no, everyone should be treated the same. But we still hear the chant ?No gays or lesbians in the military?. This is because it is in the self interests of the heterosexual people in the military have homosexuals in the military. The injustice of this idea becomes crystal clear when we examine the opposite statement of ?No heterosexuals in the military? an idea that is equally ludicrous. (Kessler, pp.174) As a result of the way we instinctively treat those that are different because they are seen as a threat, our society is will remain perpetually unjust. (Richard E. Mohr)

In Europe and the Americas, certainly, centuries of Christianity as the dominant faith have vastly influenced thinking based on the conviction that homosexuality is both unnatural and sinful. This is, moreover, true of all Christian denominations, from the Roman Catholic to the Anglican and Episcopalian. Both in past eras and modern times, for example, Anglican and Protestant scholars consistently cite homosexuality as an aberration and a violation of God 's will. It is held as an orientation that dangerously threatens orthodoxy by ignoring the tenets of the Bible (Sachs, 2009, p. 20). Not surprisingly, Roman Catholic views are at least equally as strong, and what has long developed in Western cultures is a widespread social condemnation of homosexuality which, as faith provides a groundwork for civil and legal matters, then become embedded in the societies. In plain terms, there has been an historic and consistent rejection of homosexuality as deviant, contrary to Christian morality, and unhealthy for both individual and society.

Bill Clinton’s military policy in the 1994 National Defense Authorization Act is more commonly referred to as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” This policy did not allow the military to ask enlistees if they were gay, but it did stipulate that service members could be subject to dismissal if they came out as being homosexual (Belkin, “Don’t ask, don’t tell”). Before this policy was set into motion, the military had the right to question enlistees about their sexual orientation. With this information, military leaders could choose to reject enlistees if they so wished. The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy was a step forward for the queer community in the military, but it was not much of one considering the fact that equal rights for the LGBTQIA+ community should not