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This Padlet will go into detail about the Dont ask, don’t tell (DADT) policy. The policy allowed gay people to serve in the military.

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The two lenses we found that best fit DADT were Political and Social. We chose political because with out the different politicians these policies would have not been made to help create change. We chose social because DADT affected people directly and their involvement with in the military.

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Denny Meyer served in the Navy from 1968 to 1972. He was in the Army Reserve from 1972 to 1978. Meyer states, "In those days, we served in silence. And not one day passed when you didn't worry that you were going to be found out"

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As the nation prepared for World War 2, and many psychiatrists classified homosexuality as a mental or behavioral disorder, potential servicemen began undergoing psychiatric screening as a part of the induction process.

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During World War II nearly 50,000 U.S. Army soldiers, according to a 1946 War Department estimate, received a blue discharge dismissing them from the armed services.

The “Blue Discharge” other wise revered to as “Blue Tickets” were given to people in the army who had “undesirable habits and traits of character”. Blue tickets were most often given to woman, African Americans, and LGBTQ servicemen.

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In 1945 the most widely read Black newspaper in the country, The Pittsburgh Courier, investigated blue discharges. The paper called them, “a vicious instrument which should not be perpetrated against the American Soldier.” The newspaper contacted the Secretary of War and brought the American Legion into the fight. This inspired public engagement to such a degree that the Armed Forces got rid of blue discharge in 1947.

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According to the American Psychoanalytic Association, an estimated 100,000 service members were discharged with statuses of “other than honorable,” “dishonorable” or “general” before DADT, which limited their access to benefits, health care and burial rights in a VA cemetery.

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The ban withstood challenges from the growing gay rights movement in the 1970s. In 1981, the Department of Defense reaffirmed the ban, and during the 1980s the military branches discharged close to 17,000 men and women under the homosexual category.

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During his 1992 presidential campaign, Bill Clinton announced his intention to end the ban on homosexuals in the military if elected.

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On July 19, 1993, Clinton announced the Don't ask, Don’t tell policy. Under DADT, military personnel were not allowed to discriminate against or harass closeted service members they believed to be gay. On the other hand, homosexual or bisexual service members could not disclose their sexual orientation or refer to any same-sex relationships.

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Opposition to DADT grew over the years, especially after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, as the United States began fighting wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

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A political aspect happened when Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States ran for president. In Obamas campaign he promised to immediately overturn DADT.

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In 2009 Jennifer Dane joined the Air Force and signed a waiver stating that she would be discharged for  “engaging or attempting to engage in a homosexual act,” “stating that he or she is a homosexual or bisexual,” or “marrying to attempting to marry an individual of the same sex.”Serving in the Air Force was her dream, and she was preparing to stay closeted in order to live it. Dane stated, “I knew that I had a bigger calling,”.

(The photo above is of the waiver that Dane signed)

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More than 12,000 officers had been discharged from the military for publicizing their homosexuality. On December 18, 2010, the Senate overturned the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy by a 65-31 vote, which President Barack Obama signed a few days later.

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“For the next 17 years, many gay and lesbian service members described living and serving in limbo, knowing there was no longer a ban on them per se, but that their careers would still be at risk if they were found out.”PBS

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The Pentagon added sexual orientation to the Military Equal Opportunity policy for the first time, meaning gay servicemen and servicewomen would be protected from discrimination.

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In a statement following the anniversary, President Obama said that repealing the law "upheld the fundamental American values of fairness and equality." He believed that no matter the person equality should be acted on to move America forward.

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After the Banning Don’t ask, Don’t tell, other improvements were made regarding the LGBTQ+ community. On June 26, 2015 the U.S. The Supreme Court took down all bans on same-sex marriages, legalizing it in all fifty states.

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Women weren’t allowed to join the military and gay people weren’t allowed to express themselves and be who they are. Both suffered due to ignorance and idiocy.

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Regulations and restrictions concerning the military were strict and sometimes unethical and dehumanizing. Bases would have solders work under horrible conditions and would limit communication with family. Similarly, gay people were unable to feel safe and comfortable being who they were as it would risk their job and reputation.

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DADT created growth in America in many ways. First of all DADT proved that people would do anything to protect their country even if it put them at risk. It also helped to bring light to discrimination faced by the LGBTQ+ community.