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Across the Pond

So this is what the future looks like. The International Herald Tribune has an article out today on the state of the British military since they lifted the ban on open service in 2000. One Royal Air Force officer tells his story of coming out to his squad:

"I said, 'Right, I've got something to tell you. I believe that for us to be able to work closely together and have faith in each other, we have to be honest and open and frank. 'And it has to be a two-way process, and it starts with me baring my soul. You may have heard some rumors, and, yes, I have a long-term partner who is a he, not a she.'"

And the conclusion? It wasn't a big deal. In fact, he says "he found that coming out to his troops actually increased the unit's strength and cohesion." The article also, inevitably, compares and contrasts the status of gay military personnel in the British and American armed forces. There was this interesting snippet about one British military officer who served alongside American service members in Iraq:

One major, an openly gay liaison officer in the British Territorial Army, told of an exchange he had in the southern Iraqi city of Basra with an American staff sergeant, far from home and anxious to confide. "He privately let me know he was gay," the major said in an interview. "Not in a romantic way, but in a matter-of-fact way. He found it difficult, because he clearly had a whole part of his private life that he had to keep separate and distinct and couldn't discuss with people. He was in his mid-30s, with no girlfriend and no wife, and he had to use all these white lies."

Another, who served in Afghanistan, had this to say about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell:"

"I find it strange, coming from the land of the free and freedom of speech and democracy, given the changes in the world attitude," said a gay squadron leader in the Royal Air Force who recently returned from Afghanistan. "It's just not the issue it used to be."

Indeed. Check out the rest of the story online at the International Herald Tribune. - Rebecca Sawyer

Labels: foreign militaries, in the news, Iraq, UK

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05-17-07