Two Defense officials called for the repeal of the U.S. military’s controversial ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy, which bans openly gay individuals from serving in the Armed Forces, in a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday.
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen announced the establishment of a Defense Department panel to prepare the armed forces for the possible elimination of the law.
‘The question before us is not whether the military prepares to make this change but how we must ‘- how we best prepare it for it,’ Gates said at the hearing.
In the meantime, the Pentagon is expected to announce two policy shifts within the confines of the existing law that would make it more difficult for homosexuals to be discharged, according to Gates’ testimony.
If the suggested changes are made, informants outside of the military would not be able to prompt investigations by outing service members as being gay and only high-ranking generals and admirals will have the power to authorize a discharge.
In Tuesday’s hearing, those on both sides of the issue spoke about DADT. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., spoke in favor of the repeal.
‘I believe that ending the policy would improve our military’s capability and reflect our commitment to equal opportunity,’ he said. ‘I did not find the arguments that were used to justify ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ convincing when it took effect in 1993, and they are less so now.’
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said this is the wrong time for the proposed DADT repeal. Though the former presidential candidate had questioned the policy several years ago, he now called it ‘imperfect but effective.’
‘This successful policy has been in effect for over 15 years, and it is well understood and predominantly supported by our military at all levels,’ McCain said. ‘At a time when our Armed Forces are fighting and sacrificing on the battlefield, now is not the time to abandon the policy.’
In his Jan. 27 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama briefly touched on the subject, expressing full support of the proposed repeal.
‘This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are,’ Obama said.
Members of Spectrum, Boston University’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights organization, said the relaxation of the law is a good start towards repealing DADT altogether.
‘I think it’s a step in the right direction,’ said Spectrum Outreach Chair and College of Arts and Sciences junior Ksenia Lanin. ‘If they got rid of it completely, the army probably wouldn’t be able to handle it right away. Before they can get rid of it, they need to prepare the Armed Forces for having openly gay members.’
Spectrum President and College of Communication junior Daniel Rankel said the policy is not only unfair but goes against the purpose of enlisting in the military ‘- serving one’s country.
‘We have a volunteer military. These people just want to serve their country and do their jobs,’ he said. ‘People are losing their jobs over something that has no bearing on what they are there to do.’
Lanin said there has been a push at BU to get rid of the policy, including several protests around Apr. 16, 2009, the National Day of Silence for LGBT rights.
‘This is relevant at BU because not only do we have a large LGBT population, but we also have a large ROTC population, and sometimes those groups overlap,’ she said. ‘It’s really hard for a lot of those people to have to hide it.’
Rankel said the progress made so far has been positive, but that he wished the policy would be repealed immediately.
‘[The proposed repeal] is something,’ he said, ‘but it’s time to just end it.’