Gays in the Military

Ranking the Issues: Gay Rights in an Economic Crisis

Emma Ruby-Sachs | Posted 11.24.2008 | Politics


Emma Ruby-Sachs

Because gay civil rights struggles affect fewer individuals, it's hard to justify putting them at the top of the list. The alternative is to reject the ranked priorities political model altogether.

Don't Ask Don't Tell: Getting Repeal Right This Time

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 11.23.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

To get rid of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" we must proceed deliberately and according to a plan, which will not require grandstanding, but rather actual leadership.

Obama and the End of the Military's Ban on Gays

John Ridley | Posted 11.21.2008 | Politics


John Ridley

While this will not be an easy fight, it also won't likely be a return to the belabored hearings of the Clinton presidency which produced the Bizarro World Don't Ask, Don't Tell non-policy of not asking what nobody's saying.

Obama, Bill Clinton and the Media "Center"

Norman Solomon | Posted 11.20.2008 | Media


Norman Solomon

The fog of memory and the spin of media are teaming up to explain that Obama must hew to "the center" if he knows what's good for his presidency.

This Time, Hear All Opinions on Gay Troops Issue

Nathaniel Frank | Posted 11.18.2008 | Politics


Nathaniel Frank

Yesterday a document was released that was signed by over one hundred retired generals and admirals calling for repeal of the gay ban.

A Letter to General Powell

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 10.19.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

General Powell, is there is something wrong with a gay kid dreaming he or she could one day be a soldier in the Army of the United States?

Right-Wing Activists Plan Private D.C. Briefing on Gays in the Military

Steve Ralls | Posted 09.30.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

The event, outlined in a letter obtained exclusively by PFLAG, is described as "a private, off-the-record briefing" to strategize about how to battle efforts to repeal t "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

What the Media Missed in a Plan for Repeal

Steve Ralls | Posted 09.19.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

Anyone who read the headlines this week about Senator Barack Obama's support for ending the federal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on lesbian, gay and bi...

Elaine Donnelly's Radical Cultural Change

Steve Ralls | Posted 08.19.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

Right-wing "military" activist Elaine Donnelly, fresh off of her critically disastrous appearance before the House Armed Services Committee, is again ...

The Men Who Made Me Love Hillary

Glenn Hurowitz | Posted 08.09.2008 | Politics


Glenn Hurowitz

Unfortunately, the coterie of cautious centrists being touted by the Obama campaign as short-listers for the vice presidential nod are hardly up to the task of taking on the Republican attack machine.

A Six-Figure Solution Missing One Common-Sense Addition

Steve Ralls | Posted 08.05.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

Retaining good straight troops to the tune of $150,000 with Arabic skills may be an investment worth making, but in the long run, that platoon of lesbians might just turn out to be priceless, too.

Irony in the House Dead? Not Yet

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 07.25.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

The very same arguments that were made in 1948 against mingling the races in the military were made Wednesday against mixing homosexuals and heterosexuals the way they mix in the real world.

Straight But Not Narrow in the House

Steve Ralls | Posted 07.23.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

Try as they might, opponents of open service, led by Elaine Donnelly, were unable to crack the Members' belief that the time for change has long since passed.

Larry Craig Supports "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

The Huffington Post | Posted 07.23.2008 | Politics


While the 2008 presidential campaign heats up with an unexpected twist seemingly every day, it's nice to know that there are still some predictable el...

Senator Nunn's Last Chance

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 07.18.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

Sam Nunn will not be on the ticket with Obama. But if he would like to be offered the job of Secretary of State or Defense, he has to tell Obama that he supports repealing DADT -- and he has to mean it.

A Military Mom "Tells" Her Story

Steve Ralls | Posted 07.17.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has cast a shadow over the careers, lives and families of the service members I have come to know and respect, many of whom are LGBT.

A Turning Point for Troops & Their Families

Steve Ralls | Posted 07.14.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

Our country's ban on gay troops is counter-productive and foolish. It has ruined careers, ruined lives and put an unacceptable burden on the men and women who wear our country's uniform.

A Time to Ask. A Time to Tell

Richard Klass | Posted 07.10.2008 | Politics


Richard Klass

What is often overlooked is that the "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy was supposed to be a way station on the road to full acceptance of homosexuals in the military.

Study: Military Gays Don't Undermine Unit Cohesion

AP | ANNE FLAHERTY | Posted 07.07.2008 | Politics


WASHINGTON — Congress should repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" law because the presence of gays in the military is unlikely to undermine the ab...

Sergeant Manzella Comes Out, Is Kicked Out

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 07.01.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

At the very time the Pentagon is actively recruiting to keep its numbers up, soldiers who happen to be openly gay are being treated as though they are convicted felons and unceremoniously booted out.

Women's Liberation? No, Oppression

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 06.30.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

With Don't Ask, Don't Tell, gays and bisexuals are not free to be themselves in the armed forces of their country. In addition to everything else that this law is -- costly, inefficient, unfair -- it is disgraceful.

A Medal for Sergeant Matlovich?

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 06.23.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

It would be nice to think that gay serviceman Leonard Matlovich's battle ended the struggle against the discrimination of gays in the military. Instead, it started it.

I Love You; Please Go Away

Steve Ralls | Posted 06.23.2008 | Politics


Steve Ralls

The loss of talent to the military, and the country, is staggering -- language specialists, helicopter pilots, doctors, intelligence officers -- all dismissed because they happen to be gay.

Gays in the Military: It's Time for Spine

Aubrey Sarvis | Posted 06.12.2008 | Politics


Aubrey Sarvis

When Secretary of Defense Robert Gates failed to recommend Peter Pace for a second two-year term as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff one year ago...

Nunn the Wiser?

Nathaniel Frank | Posted 06.10.2008 | Politics


Nathaniel Frank

Nunn's call for reconsideration of the gay ban is a welcome development, but his proposal for a Pentagon study is behind the curve, especially given the military's history of burying studies.