As promised, it’s Wednesday and time for our first class! This week we’re covering “Don’t ask, don’t tell.” Kentucky Fairness Alliance supports the work of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and their top reasons for lifting the ban on gay service members.
~End discrimination (No other law mandates firing someone because they are lesbian, gay or bisexual.);
~Strengthen Military Readiness;
~Save Tax Payer Money (“Don’t ask, don’t tell” cost more than $360 million in taxpayer funds between 1994 and 2003.);
~Honor Our Troops; and
~Stop the Double-Standard.
79% of Americans are in support of lifting the ban on openly gay service members! 62% of Republicans and 85% of Democrats are in support of lifting the ban.
High-ranking military officials are also speaking! General John Shalikashvili, retired chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff stated, “I now believe that if gay men and lesbians served openly in the U.S. military, they would not undermine the efficacy of the armed forces.”
The Military Readiness Act (HR1246) was introduced in the U.S. House in 2006 by Rep. Meehan (D-MA). This piece of legislation would establish a policy of non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation for the members of the armed services.
Both major presumptive presidential nominees have taken positions on “Don’t ask, don’t tell.” Senator Barack Obama (D-Illinois) supports lifting the ban, while Senator John McCain (R-Arizona) does not.
In 2008, Rep. Davis (D-California) held the first congressional hearing on “Don’t ask, don’t tell” since its inception 15 years ago. Check out Rep. Davis’ opening remarks on YouTube.
HOMEWORK: Do you know someone that has been dismissed from the military because of being who they are? Do you think DADT will be repealed during the next presidency? Post your response on here.
That’s it for this week. Next week, we’ll be discussing employment discrimination. See you then.
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1 comment:
Due to the situation in Iraq, I do think that DADT may be repealed during the next presidency, but only if military leaders push for it. Certainly I would think that most conservatives would support sending more GLBT folks to Iraq since they think we should die anyway! Seriously, though, I believe there's no way that McCain would push for this. Although Obama seems to be fairly supportive on our issues, I think he'll avoid taking on so-called controversial issues like DADT -- at least until later in his administration. Since Joe Biden's daughter is a lesbian, maybe he will talk to Obama about this issues on a more personal level and increase its priority in Obama's mind.
Jodi Jenkins
Bardstown
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