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LGBT Veterans Renew Call for Equality
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NOVEMBER 10, 2008
CONTACT: Adam Ebbin
PHONE: (202) 621-5416
Former Army Sergeant Darren Manzella Calls on Military to Honor Every Veteran
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Urges Repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" with Events in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) spokesperson, former U.S. Army Sergeant Darren Manzella, will address the Columbia, MD, chapter of PFLAG (Parents, Families, Friends of Lesbians and Gays) 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Owen Brown Interfaith Center.
"This Veterans Day, not every American who has served our country and put his or her life on the line will be given the honor and respect they deserve," said SLDN Communications Director Adam Ebbin. "We are committed to exposing ‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell' as a failed, unjust ban that denies qualified Americans the opportunity to serve while also eroding military readiness, recruitment and retention."
Sergeant Manzella was interviewed while serving as an openly gay soldier in the Army on CBS News' 60 Minutes, in which he discussed the need to overturn the military's discriminatory "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) law that bans open service based on sexual orientation. He was discharged in June 2008 under DADT and now works with SLDN in advocating for repeal of this unfair law in order to ensure that all Americans have equal opportunity to serve.
SLDN is joining other organizations around the country this Veterans Day 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.
• Former Marine Sergeant Marquell Smith will serve as SLDN's official Screening Co-Presenter for 9 p.m. showing of the film Ask Not at the Landmark in Chicago as part of the Reeling 2008 27th Chicago Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival. This documentary tells the compelling human story of military members who share their painful experiences of serving in silence under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Exposing the political dynamics that led to DADT, Ask Not also examines how social attitudes have changed since the ban was first enacted in 1993.
• In Los Angeles SLDN Speakers Bureau member and former Marine Captain Julianne Sohn will speak at the local Gay and Lesbian Center at 7 p.m. PST about her experience as a veteran who was discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." She will then participate in a subsequent letter-writing and care package workshop.
• SLDN Speakers Bureau member and retired U.S. Major Jeff McGowan, who also wrote the groundbreaking book Major Conflict, will discuss his personal experience as a former soldier who rose from a cadet to the rank of major as a gay man. McGowan will join an interactive panel discussion concerning ROTC on campus, 7-9 p.m. at Columbia University in New York City.
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is a national, non-profit legal services, watchdog and policy organization dedicated to ending discrimination against and harassment of military personnel affected by "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and related forms of intolerance. A "Guide to ‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell' " for journalists is available at http://sldn.3cdn.net/43b1d9fec919b5918b_1zm6bxv9l.pdf.
