Latest News
Welcome to SLDN's newsroom where you'll find the latest SLDN press releases and news stories.
For more information, please contact:
Paul DeMiglio
Communications Manager
(202) 621-5408
Press Releases
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Disappointed by Selection of Reverend Warren
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) issued the following statement regarding the selection of Reverend Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at President-elect Barack Obama's 56th Presidential Inauguration on January 20. ...Read More
SLDN Pleased Major Witt will have Day in Court
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled December 4 that it would not reconsider a prior ruling that raised constitutional doubts about the application of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the federal statute banning open service in the military based on sexual orientation. In its ruling, the federal appeals court denied the Air Force's bid for a rehearing of a May 21 decision reviving a suit by Major Margaret Witt in Washington State who was discharged because she is a lesbian. ...Read More
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Welcomes Congresswoman Susan Davis to San Diego Reception
Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Susan Davis (D-CA) will join Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) on Thursday to discuss how the new Congress and Administration can play a role in helping to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," (DADT) the federal statute which mandates the firing of military personnel on the basis of sexual orientation. SLDN Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis will provide comments on President-elect Barack Obama's recent appointments and the implications they could have on the DADT debate. Testimonies of discharge under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" will be shared, and the status of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (H.R. 1246), which would repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and institute a nondiscrimination law, will also be discussed. ...Read More
LGBT Veterans Renew Call for Equality
This Veterans Day SLDN is collaborating with allies around the country in a host of educational and public awareness initiatives designed to inform the public on issues related to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and the urgent need for repeal so that all veterans are honored and respected regardless of sexual orientation. ...Read More
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Repeal Effort to Break New Ground in Texas
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is taking its effort to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" to Texas, where it will meet with local supporters, host events and do a two-day media blitz in the Dallas-Fort Worth area for the first time. ...Read More
News Clips
“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” an Affront to Our National Security
Change.org guest blogger Janessa Goldbeck writes that 12,500 people have been discharged from the U.S. military under the archaic "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law, including 60 Arabic linguists. DADT has been in effect since 1994. With the U.S. fighting two wars, are 12,500 qualified U.S. soldiers being turned away from service enough of a reason to overturn DADT? The answer is a crystal clear yes. Anything less is an affront to our national security. ...Read More
2008: From Obama to Prop 8
For LGBTs, 2008 was filled with triumph, tragedy and troops.
On the money: The estate of Ric Weiland-one of the first people to work at Microsoft Corporation and a high school classmate of the company's founders, Bill Gates and Paul Allen, bequeathed $65 million to gay-rights and HIV/AIDS organizations. Among the organizations that benefited from the bequest were Lambda Legal and the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.
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An Openly Gay Soldier, If Only for Six Months
Queerty Year in Review - Months after admitting to superiors that he was gay and showing them videotape of him making out with his boyfriend, Sergeant Darren Manzella found himself still in the Army. Although ultimately Manzella, like so many others, ended up booted from the military branch, that it took the brass so long to can him shows that enthusiasm for the Pentagon's long-standing "don't ask, don't tell" policy is waning. Looking to raise awareness, Manzella went on 60 Minutes last year. Queerty wrote about the surprising quiet from the Pentagon following the interview. ...Read More
Q-Notes Person of the Year: Angela Brightfeather
From her humble home in North Carolina to the doorsteps of national organizations and the halls of Congress, there's no doubt that Angela Brightfeather has done her part this year. If there were issues to be discussed, if the transgender community needed an advocate or if the transgender community was being ignored, Brightfeather stepped up. The 63-year-old transgender leader and activist is a legend - she's been involved in advocacy work since she was in her 20s; and she's certainly not afraid of ruffling feathers. As vice president of the Transgender American Veterans Association (TAVA), Brightfeather has worked diligently to see the needs of transgender service members met with dignity and equality. Among the group's accomplishments this year are a highly succesful survey of transgender service members and veterans and joint work with the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." ...Read More
Will (or When Will?) Obama Repeal “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell”?
Shortly after president-elect Barack Obama takes the oath of office, will he confirm parallels to Clinton (young, ran on the economy) by seeking to change the military's ban on openly gay people as one of his first major policy initiatives? Not likely. Obama has long pledged to revisit, revise and ultimately repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT), as the policy is known. But early indications are that he'll do so in a manner that engages the military leadership and Congress. He hopes thereby to avoid the way Clinton's handling made it a lighting-rod issue. Obama doesn't want a public-relations hot potato that tarnishes his public image or hinders his ability to accomplish other early legislative efforts. Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, also points out that Admiral Michael Mullen (current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff "has acknowledged that they're having discussions at the Pentagon at the highest level to possibly change" DADT. The military has, it seems, been preparing for the inevitable even before Obama's plans were made clear at the Democratic Convention. ...Read More
Op-eds
Getting Ahead of Congress
Consider "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which proved a political quagmire for Bill Clinton early in his first term. In 1993, just 44 percent of Americans believed gays should serve in the military. Today, an encouraging three-quarters of the public believes gay people should serve openly. Repealing Don't Ask, Don't Tell will still be controversial. But with significant public support for a repeal, the time is ripe for the administration to signal that it takes the issue seriously. ...Read More
Let Our Willing Citizens Serve Our Country First
The Pentagon must be trying its hand at parody with last week's news, as reported by the Associated Press: Struggling to find enough doctors, nurse and linguists for the war effort, the Pentagon will temporarily recruit foreigners who have been living in the United States on student and works visas, or with refugee or political asylum status. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has authorized the Navy, Army, Air Force and Marine Corps to recruit certain legal residents whose critical medical and language skill are "vital to the national interest," AP reported. The services can now start a one-year pilot program to find up to 1,000 foreigners who have lived in the U.S. legally for at least two years. This "solution" is so maddening. Why? "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." The counter-productive and embarrassing law continues to hurt our military efforts as it discriminates against those who would honorably serve our country. According to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, since the law's 1994 implementation, more than 12,500 women and men have been discharged. ...Read More
Do or Die for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
Gay rights activist with an actor-model-author hyphenate, Reichen Lehmkuhl kicks off his Advocate.com column with a blunt look at the state of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," promises made by President-elect Obama, and why gay Americans can't let the passing of Prop. 8 distract us from continuing to fight to overturn the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military. One organization, he says, has its arms around all of these issues -- the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. ...Read More
The Defense We Need, And Can Afford
The new defense secretary and the Joint Chiefs of Staff must eventually acknowledge what many major corporations, city and county fire and police departments around the country, and 24 of our international military allies already know and practice: Sexual orientation bears no relationship to job performance. ...Read More
Phoenixville News: Huge Issues Hang on 2008 Election
It is time for all Americans to think seriously about the issues and problems facing our country and stop listening to the media uproar around personalities and smear tactics on all sides of the political spectrum. ...Read More
