The repeal of the controversial don’t ask, don’t tell policy was signed into effect by President Barack Obama this past December and finally, the repeal becomes official this month. It has been a long time in coming to this point, to say the least.
For any who may not know the specifics, former President Bill Clinton signed DADT into law in 1993. The policy fell under a Department of Defense directive requiring the discharge of any service members found to be homosexual or bisexual. DADT was intended to ensure that anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, could join the military – provided, of course, they never admitted to or displayed any homosexual behavior.
That was 18 years ago. Eighteen years. That’s roughly as long as many of us have been alive. For a campus community known to rally for and support gay rights, that span of time seems incredibly long.
Eighteen years ago this directive was created. Since then nearly 14,000 service men and women have been discharged from the military. Three and a half years ago Barack Obama came into office promising change. It is only now, after all this time, after so many losses, heartaches and humiliations, that change in this regard has finally occurred.
Maybe it’s just me falling into a pessimistic frame of mind, but this almost seems too little, too late.
Long awaited steps toward equality are taking place; the military and the Pentagon now must accept even openly gay members. But what of those 14,000 discharged soldiers?
These men and women that intended to devote their lives to this country were dishonored and dismissed. Everything they had worked for is gone. They are never going to get back those 18 years. They will never have the opportunity to know what they could have done for this country.
So are we supposed to simply forget the trials they went through? Hardly.
While I absolutely wish more progress had been made earlier than now, it is progress. Obama may have only come to this issue in the final stages of his term but he did accomplish what he set out to do.
Thousands of men and women may have lost years off their military careers. Due to their experiences, many thousands more people in the future will have the opportunity to join the military regardless of sexual orientation. Future soldiers will have this opportunity because of those that came before them.
There is still a long way to go before institutionalized prejudice can take a backseat to overall equality and fairness. Even so, this is a big step in the right direction, hopefully just one of many more soon to come.
For now, though, this is far from an ending. This is progress.