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Prominent Social Scientists Tell First Circuit No Evidence Exists to Exclude Gay Military Personnel

WASHINGTON, DC – In a brief filed last week with the First Circuit Court of Appeals, the American Sociological Association (ASA) and five distinguished social scientists indicate there is no evidence supporting the exclusion of openly gay military personnel from the armed forces. Those signing the brief, filed in support of the plaintiffs in Cook v. Rumsfeld, a constitutional challenge to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” include Dr. Aaron Belkin, Professor of Political Science at the University of California at Santa Barbara and Director of the Michael D. Palm Center (formerly the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military); Dr. Melissa Embser-Herbert, J.D., Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at Hamline University; Dr. Elizabeth Kier, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Washington; Dr. Robert MacCoun, Professor of Public Policy, Professor of Law and Affiliated Professor of Psychology at the University of California at Berkeley; and Dr. David Segal, Professor of Sociology and Affiliate Professor of Government, Politics and Public Affairs at the University of Maryland.

The brief states that, “Social science research does not support the view that allowing gay men and lesbians to serve openly would hurt military performance.” The brief also goes on to say that “research shows that the military’s arguments about the impact of allowing gay men and lesbians to serve openly in the military, the nature of unit cohesion, and its relationship to group performance lack any scientifically-validated, empirical support. The research suggests, instead, that allowing gay men and lesbians to serve openly in the military would not adversely affect military performance.”

“(T)he experience of other Western countries in integrating openly gay and lesbian personnel into their armed forces provide useful data points for verifying” that the exclusion of those personnel does not undermine cohesion or performance of units. “Those countries that have recently changed their policies to allow gay and lesbian soldiers to serve openly,” the brief states, “have demonstrated that open integration of gay men and lesbians does not have the deleterious consequences for military performance predicted by supporters of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’” The British experience of integration, which has been described by that country’s Ministry of Defense as an “unqualified success,” is also “particularly instructive,” the brief argues.

The scientists go on to note that, “As it had done in the past in opposing racial integration in the 1940s and gender integration in the 1970s and 1980s, the military rested its arguments on anecdotal observations by military commanders and on flawed interpretations of dated studies that discussed unit cohesion in World War II.” Those observations, they argue, have been disproven by sound social science research.

“These prominent social scientists, along with the nation’s premiere sociological association, have provided important insight for the First Circuit to consider,” said C. Dixon Osburn, executive director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN). “There is no sound, scientific evidence supporting the exclusion of patriotic gay Americans from our armed forces. To the contrary, the evidence clearly suggests that doing so would only strengthen our military readiness and broaden the talent pool from which our armed forces recruit. Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ is a win-win situation.”

Cook v. Rumsfeld, filed on behalf of twelve veterans of the war on terror who were dismissed under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” has been appealed to the First Circuit following an April District Court decision granting the government’s motion to dismiss the case. The suit was filed on behalf of the plaintiffs by SLDN and the law firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP. In their main brief, the plaintiffs argue that “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” violates their rights of substantive due process, equal protection and freedom of speech.

More information on Cook v. Rumsfeld, copies of the military leaders’ brief, and other information related to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” is available online at www.sldn.org.

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