In the midst of the US military’s examination of its ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy, those who have lived through it are sharing their views.
Navy Airman Lindsay Runkle considers the policy as a part of life in the military. “In a way, I think it should just be left alone,” she said.
But other veterans and service members have different thoughts.
Darren Manzella, a former Army sergeant who was released under the policy, said that his revelation to his unit “brought us closer together”. He argued against views that serving openly as a homosexual will affect the solidarity of the units. “I served openly for nearly two years in the military,” he said. “And my commander knew I was gay. My peers, colleagues knew I was gay,” he added.
Navy Petty Officer Cody Guadagnoli commented that as long as homosexual associations are not practiced on his ship, “then it really doesn’t impact the workplace”.
For army veteran Jon Soltz, homosexuality is never an issue in combat. “First off, there are already gays in the military. Second off, we have extremely strict guidelines in the uniformed code of military justice,” he said.
“Why can’t we use the same very strict guidelines about public displays of affection with heterosexuals to go ahead and include gay relationships as well?” he added.
Alan Jim, a Navy Petty Officer, added that gay and lesbian soldiers are treated equally.
Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that he hopes for a plan to repeal the policy before the year ends, and also a guide to administer it more compassionately within the next 45 days.
