Frontlines: The Latest from OutServe-SLDN

Meeting Jason Knight

It was a a privilege and fun to accompany Jason Knight last week on his 2-day trip to the University of Chicago to counter General Peter Pace’s address there! General Pace was invited to address the Graduate School of Business before he made his infamous remarks on gays being “immoral”. After Pace’s comments, 1,400 students and faculty of the University of Chicago then signed a position to un-invite him. They figured that a leader who gravely insults those who serve underneath him should not be held up to business students as a model of outstanding management practices. When it became clear General Pace would indeed appear, three University of Chicago departments joined together to invite Jason Knight in response to Pace’s appearance. They didn’t want to silence General Pace but wanted to broaden the debate to include the views of a gay sailor who served under Pace. When General Pace made his insulting remarks, Jason was serving in Kuwait as an openly gay sailor, out to other members of his unit. He took umbrage at Pace’s remarks, and said so in a brief letter to the Stars and Stripes. When the paper did a full article on him, the Navy began discharge proceedings against him under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. Jason’s final discharge papers came through the day after he spoke in Chicago. The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, the Divinity School, and the Center for Gender Studies at the University of Chicago pooled funds to invite Jason to respond to General Pace. He gave a talk to linguistic students about learning Hebrew at the Defense Language Institute in Monterrey, taking classes seven hours a day, five to six days a week for forty-eight weeks. This intensive training provided him with the skills to carry out simultaneous translation for the Navy. Jason spoke again the next day on campus in “counterpoint” to General Pace’s comments, a few hours before Pace’s speech, describing his experiences as a gay sailor. He was joined by MSgt. Jean Albright who served in the Air Force for twenty years. Then, outside the building where General Pace gave his speech, Jason spoke with nine media outlets, including the Chicago Tribune which originally broke the story of Pace’s remarks on gays. He reiterated his request that Pace apologize for his remarks. It was great to spend time with Jason as he set the record “straight” about the outstanding service our gay, lesbian, and bisexual troops provide to our country despite having to live under the discriminatory “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law. The University of Chicago community learned what a waste it is for talented, skilled, highly trained service members to be “fired” by the military. The Navy has lost an outstanding linguist. Jason, however, has the skills and training the military provided him, and his whole life ahead of him. - Julie Kruse

Labels: events, in the news, jason knight, Pace

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05-24-07