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notthatkindagay:

There’s a constant fear that hangs over some service members deployed to a war zone — and it’s not necessarily the threat from insurgents or roadside bombs.

One Marine serving in Afghanistan said suppressing the truth about his sexual orientation is gut-wrenching.

“I do worry a lot about being outed and kicked out,” he said in an e-mail to CNN. “So far the military has been my livelihood and my source of work/income for the past six years. I don’t want that all taken away from me and me being discharged anything but honorably.”

The Marine requested anonymity because of the military’s 1993 congressionally mandated “don’t ask, don’t tell” law prohibiting gay, lesbian and bisexual service members from coming out.

Being homosexual in the military was grounds for discharge before “don’t ask, don’t tell.” The argument against gays in the military was that they would cause a breakdown of unit cohesion and morale.

Others argue that those concerns are unfounded, pointing to other U.S. allies such as Great Britain and Israel which have openly gay and lesbian members serving in the military.

Don’t ask, don’t tellIn 1992, President Clinton suspended the military’s policy which barred gay, lesbian and bisexual people from serving in the military.

Congress later passed DADT in 1993.

The law says GLB members are allowed to serve unless they:
—Make a statement of their sexuality , publicly or even to family and friends (and are later turned in)
—Attempt to marry a person of the same sex
—Get caught engaging in a homosexual act

In 2005, a bill was introduced in the House to repeal DADT. The bill however did not have enough support to make it out of committee.


In 2008, more than 100 retired generals and admirals called for a DADT repeal. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell has called for a review of the policy.

During the 2008 presidential election, then-candidate Barack Obama promised to end the DADT policy.

Obama, as president, has been criticized by GLB groups for not pushing harder to get the law repealed.

Military statistics indicate that from 1997 to 2008 — over 10,500 service members have been discharged under the law.

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network — an organization providing legal help — say over 13,000 GLB members have been discharged since 1994.

“[I’m concerned] all the time, especially on the phone,” the Marine said. “If I call with him, it’s brief and just yes/no answers. When I am on Facebook, I’ll view my gay friends’ pages but most of them are supporters and have a lot of don’t ask, don’t tell headlines so I quickly scroll or minimize the page in case anyone next to me happens to peep.”

Even in his e-mail correspondence to CNN, the Marine said that he was using an extra small font in case someone peeking over his shoulder could see the words on the screen.

And for other gay and lesbian service members, the burden of trying to communicate with a partner back home— and also having to lie to their fellow troops about their sexuality — weighs heavily on their psyche.

“I always joke around with people, but it’s true: When you’re in the military and you’re gay — deployed or not deployed — it’s like you’re basically living a double life,” said another Marine, who also requested anonymity. “When you’re overseas, that double life really comes out.”