“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Fact Sheet

“You don't have to be straight to be in the military; you just have to be able to shoot straight.”

Barry Goldwater 
 

Latest Headlines

• Jul 16, 2008—Lawmakers to Hear First Testimony since 1993 on Law Banning Gays from Military.  On July 23 (Wednesday) the Military Personnel Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee will hold a hearing on the impact of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) law banning service by openly lesbian, gay and bisexual service members. The hearing will be the first since Congress enacted DADT fifteen years ago.¹  
  
• Jul 8, 2008–Study—“Congress should ditch (DADT)”?according to a new study.  The study was conducted by four retired military officers, including the three-star Air Force lieutenant general who in early 1993 was tasked with implementing DADT. “Evidence shows that allowing gays² to serve openly is unlikely to pose any significant risk to morale, good order, discipline or cohesion,” the officers said.³  (See Palm Center Study below for details.) 
  
• Jun 23, 2008—The Army and Air Force discharged a disproportionate number of women in 2007 under DADT ?. While women make up 14 percent of Army personnel, 46 percent of those discharged under the policy last year were women. And while 20 percent of Air Force personnel are women, 49 percent of its discharges under the policy last year were women.⁴  
  
• Jun 3 2008—Sam Nunn Urges Re-think of DADT Former Sen. Sam Nunn told reporters today that "times change" and it is now time to reconsider the ban on openly gay service that he spearheaded as Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee in 1993. When "fifteen years go by on any personnel policy...it's appropriate to take another look at it--see how it's working, ask the hard questions, hear from the military."⁵

 Palm Center Study: “Report of the General/Flag Officers’ Study Group” on DADT, Jul 7, 2008 ⁶

Some of the Findings:

• The law locks the military into a policy that does not allow the Pentagon to adapt to changing circumstances.
• Existing military laws/rules provide commanders with sufficient means to discipline inappropriate conduct. 
• DADT has forced some commanders to choose between breaking the law and undermining unit cohesion.
• DADT has prevented some gay service members from obtaining medical care or religious counseling.
• DADT has made it harder for some gays to perform their duties.
• Evidence shows that allowing gays to serve openly is unlikely to pose any significant risk to morale, good order, discipline, or cohesion.

 Recommendations from the Study Group (summarized):

1. Congress should repeal 10 USC § 654 and return authority for personnel policy under this law to the DoD.
2. The DoD should eliminate “don’t tell” while maintaining current authority under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and service regulations to preclude misconduct prejudicial to good order and discipline and unit cohesion. The prerogative to disclose sexual orientation should be considered a personal and private matter.
3. Remove from DoD directives all references to “bisexual,” “homosexual,” “homosexual conduct,” “homosexual acts,” and “propensity”?.
4. Immediately establish and reinforce safeguards for the confidentiality of all conversations between service members and chaplains, doctors, and mental health professionals.

 DADT by the Numbers (Good Stats to Remember):

• 12: # of major U.S. wars in which gays have bravely and honorably served since the American Revolution⁷
• 65,000: # of gay Americans currently serving on active duty and in the National Guard and Reserves⁸
• 1,000,000: # of gay veterans in the US today⁹
• 12,000+: # of service members discharged by the Pentagon since DADT was implemented in 1994¹⁰
• 55: # of Arab speaking linguists discharged in the past five years under DADT.¹¹
•  $200-$360 million: Est. cost to taxpayers for DADT¹² 
• $17-$28,000: Est. replacement cost for each enlisted man and woman discharged under DADT.  (The cost of replacing officers or specialists in intelligence and language are difficult to quantify but definitely higher.)¹³ 
• 79: % of Americans who currently agree that openly gay Americans should be allowed to serve in the military, (up from 57% in 1992.)¹⁴
• 75: % of soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan who say they would feel comfortable serving with gays; only about 5% say they would feel "very uncomfortable”. ¹⁵ 
• 12: # of allied countries serving with the US in Iraq or Afghanistan that allow gays to serve openly¹⁶
• 23 (out of 26): NATO allies that allow gays to serve¹⁷
• 25: # of years the battle-hardened Israeli Military has permitted gays to serve openly with no reported ecline of morale, performance, readiness or cohesion.¹⁸
• 28: # of retired U.S. generals and admirals urging Congress to repeal the policy in December, 2007¹⁹
• 4: # of reports commissioned by the DoD since 1957 that have concluded there is no evidence to support a ban on military service by gay people.²⁰

Background: “What is Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”?

DADT is the U.S. military policy which implements Public Law 103-160 (10 U.S.C. § 654). The policy prohibits anyone who “demonstrates a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts” from serving in the US armed forces. The act prohibits any gay person from disclosing his or her sexual orientation or from speaking about any homosexual relationships—including [legal] marriage—while serving in the US armed forces. The policy also requires that as long as homosexuals hide their sexual orientation, military commanders are not allowed to investigate their sexuality.²¹

Where Do They Stand?

George W. Bush: “I do believe the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy is good policy.” Apr 3, 2007 

John McCain: “Don’t ask don’t tell” policy has been very effective.” Nov 26, 2007 

Barack Obama: “Let’s repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and demonstrate that the most effective and professional military in the world is open to all Americans who are ready and willing to serve our country.”  Jun 6, 2008 

Admiral Mike Mullen, (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs): Congress, and not the military, is responsible for the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law banning openly [gay] Americans from military service.”  May 6, 2008.²² 

International Context ²³

Countries allowing gays to serve in the military:

Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Britain, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Countries that ban gays from the military:

Argentina, Belarus, Brazil, Croatia, Greece, Poland, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Turkey, United States, Venezuela

Countries that outlaw homosexuality outright:

Iran, Saudi Arabia, other Middle East nations.  

Key Milestones (Source: SLDN unless noted otherwise)

1777—Gen. Washington recruits Lt. Gen. Baron Von Steuben of Prussia, a reputed homosexual, to serve as a strategist and drillmaster for the continental army.²⁴

1860’s—The military’s first known Lesbian soldiers disguise themselves as men and fight in the 15^th Missouri Regiment during the Civil War²⁵

1942—A U.S. Navy study determines racial integration would result in “a lowering of contentment, teamwork and discipline in the service.”²⁶

1948 – Only 26% of Americans surveyed support racial integration of the armed forces. ²⁷

Jul 26, 1948—Defying popular sentiment, Truman orders an end to racial segregation in the armed forces.²⁸

1950s—Section 8 discharges are commonly given to service members found guilty of “Sexual Perversion,” especially for homosexuality; classified as an undesirable discharge, a Section 8 deprived a soldier of veteran’s benefits.  The term is known via the pop culture character, Corporal Klinger, of M*A*S*H fame.²⁹

1957—The Crittenden Report found that gay-identified people were no more likely to be a security risk than heterosexual-identified people, and found there was no rational basis for excluding gays from the Navy.³⁰

1988/89—The PERSEREC reports (1988, 1989) concluded that (1) there was no empirical evidence to support the gay ban and (2) there was no empirical data to suggest that gays differed from heterosexuals on any performance measure.

May 29, 1992—Presidential candidate Clinton proposes allowing gays to serve openly in the military

1993—A RAND report provides an exhaustive study of gays in the military and concludes that the U.S. military can lift the gay ban without detriment to readiness.

Nov 30, 1993—Bending to political pressure President Clinton signs the new gay ban, DADT into law.

Aug 4, 1995—President Clinton issues EO #12968 prohibiting sexual orientation discrimination in issuance of security clearances for both military & civilian personnel.

Apr 1998—DoD issues its only review of the implementation of “DADT” in the services. The report concludes that the law is working well despite increased discharges and reports of harassment.

Sep 23, 1998—The Second Circuit Court of Appeals upholds the constitutionality of “DADT” in Able v. US. This signals the end of multiple challenges to the constitutionality of the law.

Oct 7, 2001—Operation Enduring Freedom begins. Following the invasion of Afghanistan, gay discharge numbers decrease almost 30%

Apr 4, 2002—Marine Corp memorandum from 29 Palms asserts, “Homosexuals can and do serve honorably in the Marine Corps. Homosexuals can and do make some of the best Marines.”

Mar 20, 2003—Operation Iraqi Freedom begins. Gay discharge numbers decrease almost 40% from the discharge numbers prior to the invasion of Afghanistan.

Feb 28, 2007—110 bi-partisan Members of Congress re-introduced the Military Readiness Enhancement Act. The bill would repeal “DADT” and replace it with a policy of non-discrimination in our armed forces. 

Actions You Can Take

• Contribute to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network: www.sldn.org
• Contact your Congressman: www.congress.org
• Send this factsheet to family, friends or anyone who needs to know more about “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”