 "Photo: Illustration by Isabel Webb")
In 1993, President Bill Clinton and Senator Sam Nunn of Georgia did draft a policy that wouldn’t ask any service person upon entering the military if he or she was homosexual, nor would homosexuality be grounds for immediate discharge of any service member.
Grounds for discharge would be to engage in the act of intercourse with a same-sex partner. This policy was seen as flawed, which prompted action from Congress to codify the policy.
The policy was not seen as a failure until the case of Private First Class Barry Winchell, who became involved with a transvestite Calperina Addams. As a result, Winchell was labeled as a homosexual, which led to his death at the hands of another Private.
Even though Winchell was not homosexual, his death sparked controversy for gay rights activists who called the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy a failure.
Winchell’s case proved that homosexuals were discriminated against and doing away with the policy became a rallying point in Al Gore’s presidential campaign in 2000. Many times this policy has come up for review, but no president or the government has stepped up to abolish this policy.
The fate of this policy is now in the hands of President Barack Obama, who last year had the policy brought before the Supreme Court. The court shot down the proposal, but Obama may or may not visit this notion once again.
However, the truth is that whether a person is gay or not really shouldn’t matter provided that the individual can do his or her job. The military is a profession that abides by strict code of conduct and expects honor, courage and commitment from the individuals who serve.
The idea of focusing on a person’s sex life should not be grounds for termination, but at the same time, a person’s sex life should be kept out of the workplace. As long as the mission is not compromised, having homosexuals openly in the military shouldn’t be an issue.
We as human beings usually can’t control or decide what our preference will be. It is understandable that if the policy is overturned there may be some backlash, meaning someone who is gay can become too overt about his or her sexual activities or preference.
It is obvious that if someone shoves his or her beliefs in another person’s face, chances are the second person will be annoyed and in some cases offended. That situation calls for self-control and professionalism.
Ah professionalism . . . that will be the order of the day that will be vital for both sides of the equation. Back in the 1960’s, when the Navy was desegregated, many old Mustache Pete sailors didn’t like the idea of blacks mixed with whites.
Stories have been told about how blacks were treated very harshly during that time, and it took a long time for everyone to get along. It also helped that Admiral Zumwalt took control in the late 60’s and got rid of all the bigots, thus changing the Navy forever.
Will it take an admiral to change things once again? A general? A master chief? Who knows, but this much is true: whether you are straight or gay, we all have role to play when it comes to combat readiness.
Editorials are a collective opinion compiled by the editorial staff of the Foghorn. Forward all questions and comments to the Foghorn at editor@thedmcfoghorn.com
Be the first to comment on this article!