Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN

I chose to join the military because I need to be working for something beyond myself, working to defend freedom in the most direct way possible. Specifically, I joined the Navy’s ROTC program and have subsequently elected to switch to Marine Option because it will not only enable me to participate in the United States’ defense at home and abroad but to lead the Marines that similarly dedicate their lives after completing my degree at government expense. The path to become a Marine Officer will be mentally and physically challenging, only the best can lead the best. I strive to espouse the Marine Corps’ values of Honor, Courage and Commitment. However, the Department of Defense’s policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” says that I am only able to fulfill my oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States” if I consciously hide that I am gay. My unit has presented GMT briefs about how the Navy champions diversity, echoed policies by Defense leadership about how they now understand the roles of families and the impact of servicemembers’ personal lives on their professional lives. Sitting silently, I agree with the logic of the arguments and the solutions proposed but wonder why gays and lesbians have been left out. DoD’s argument, of course, is that an openly homosexual soldier, sailor, airman, coastgaurdsman or Marine would so significantly undermine unit cohesion that combat readiness would be adversely affected and therefore he or she must lie. I have more confidence in the professionalism of the Americans who serve in the military than Congress and the Pentagon seem to. I am willing to remain in the closet for as long as necessary to continue serving my country, but I should not have to make the sacrifice of who I am in a nation which represents every freedom. Semper Fidelis. -Anonymous