National
261 troops discharged under ‘Don’t Ask’ in FY-10
Total number of separations under anti-gay law is now at least 14,316
Servicemembers United Executive Director Alex Nicholson (Blade photo by Michael Key)
Recently released data from the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security reveal that the number of troops discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in fiscal year 2010 tallies out at 261, according to Servicemembers United.
The organization released the numbers for FY-2010 — which spans from October 2009 through September 2010 — on Thursday after obtaining the data through a Freedom of Information Act request. According to Servicemembers United, 250 service members were discharged from services run by the Pentagon and 11 service members were discharged from the Coast Guard.
In a statement, Alex Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United, said the numbers are lower than discharges under the military’s gay ban in previous fiscal years, but demonstrate that gay, lesbian and bisexual troops continued to face expulsion under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” through FY-2010.
“While this latest official discharge number represents an all-time annual low, it is still unusually high considering that the Secretary of Defense issued a directive half-way through the fiscal year to make it much harder for military units to discharge troops under ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,'” Nicholson said. “Despite this law clearly being on its deathbed at the time, 261 more careers were terminated and 261 more lives were abruptly turned upside down because of this policy.”
The 261 number is significantly lower than separations under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in previous fiscal years. According to Servicemembers United, 499 troops were discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in FY-2009, 715 in FY-2008 and 696 in FY-2007.
In a statement, Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, also noted the numbers are lower than they have been in previous years, but added they demonstrate the need for enacting “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal.
“But these numbers underscore the need to accelerate the timeline for training and repeal,” Sarvis said. “The reality is that investigations continue and service members are still in danger of being discharged. … Until we achieve full equality for all LGBT service members, the job is not done.”
In March 2010, the Pentagon unveiled new policy limiting third-party discharges under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and raising the rank of Pentagon officials who could initiate investigations and separations.
In October, Defense Secretary Robert Gates further raised the bar for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” expulsions by limiting the discharge authority to the military service secretaries “in coordination” with the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness and the Pentagon’s general counsel, although this change took place in FY-2011 and isn’t reflected in the FY-2010 numbers.
As a result of the changes in October, Nicholson told the Washington Blade he expects to find no separations under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” for FY-2011 when the data from that period is made public.
“DOD has said a couple of times that there have been no discharges since the heightened restrictions were put in place in October,” Nicholson said. “So I would expect the discharge numbers for FY-11 to be zero. I would find it very odd if there was even one discharge in FY-11 based on what the Pentagon has said several times.”
According to Servicemembers United, the official discharge statistics for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” since its inception now stands at 13,686. However, the organization previously discovered that the Pentagon often omits from its official data National Guard separations, which are also excluded from the official FY-2010 numbers. Therefore, the total number of servicemembers discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” according to the organization, now stands at least 14, 316.
In December, President Obama signed legislation allowing for repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” but this repeal law won’t take effect until 60 days pass after the president, the defense secretary and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff certify the military is ready for open service. Gates has said he won’t issue certification until training for “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal is implemented throughout the services.
The data released by Servicemembers United doesn’t include separations for service members based on gender identity. Transgender troops aren’t discharged under the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law, but as part of military regulation.
Nicholson said he has “no clue whatsoever” for discharge numbers for transgender troops in FY-2010 or in recent years in the U.S. military.
“That’s not something that anybody has ever tracked to my knowledge,” Nicholson said. “I’m not even sure that DOD tracks that. One of the issues with trans service has always been that the Defense Department classifies it differently than many in the civilian world, especially in the LGBT advocacy world, do. And so it’s not as easy to identify trans service members or identify discharges for gender identity disorder in the military as it is to track trans-related issues in the civilian employment context.”
Federal Government
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
Agency proposing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity
The U.S. Census Bureau is seeking public comment on a proposed test of sexual orientation and gender identity questions on the American Community Survey. The test would begin this summer and continue into next year.
The Census Bureau published the request as a Federal Register notice. In its press release the agency noted that the ACS is an ongoing survey that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data. It allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
As part of the process for adding new questions to the ACS, the Census Bureau tests potential questions to evaluate the quality of the data collected.
The Census Bureau proposes testing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity to meet the needs of other federal agencies that have expressed interest in or have identified legal uses for the information, such as enforcing civil rights and equal employment measures.
The test would follow the protocols of the actual ACS — with one person asked to respond to the survey on behalf of the entire household. These particular questions are asked about people 15 years of age or older. Households are invited to respond to the survey online, by paper questionnaire or by phone.
The current Federal Register notice gives the public a final opportunity to provide feedback before the Census Bureau submits its recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget for approval. The public may provide feedback through May 30 online.
The White House
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Nancy Pelosi is also among this year’s honorees
Beloved LGBTQ advocate Judy Shepard is among the 19 honorees who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., the White House announced on Friday.
The mother of Matthew Shepard, who was killed in 1998 in the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate crime, she co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation with her husband Dennis to raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ violence.
The organization runs education, outreach, and advocacy programs, many focused on schools.
In a statement shared via the Human Rights Campaign, Shepard said, “This unexpected honor has been very humbling for me, Dennis, and our family. What makes us proud is knowing our President and our nation share our lifelong commitment to making this world a safer, more loving, more respectful, and more peaceful place for everyone.
“I am grateful to everyone whose love and support for our work through the years has sustained me.
“If I had the power to change one thing, I can only dream of the example that Matt’s life and purpose would have shown, had he lived. This honor reminds the world that his life, and every life, is precious.”
Shepard was instrumental in working with then-President Barack Obama for passage of the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which was led in the House by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who will also be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during the ceremony on Friday.
Also in 2009, Shepard published a memoir, “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed,” and was honored with the Black Tie Dinner Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
“Judy Shepard has been a champion for equality and President Biden’s choice to honor her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom is a testament to what she’s done to be a force of good in the world,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.
“A mother who turned unspeakable grief over the loss of her son into a decades-long fight against anti-LGBTQ+ hatred and violence, Judy continues to make a lasting impact in the lives of the LGBTQ+ community,” she said.
“It is because of her advocacy that the first federal hate crimes legislation became law and that countless life-saving trainings, resources and conversations about equality and acceptance are provided each year by the Matthew Shepard Foundation,” Robinson said. “We are honored that Judy is a member of the HRC family and know that her work to create a more inclusive and just world will only continue.”
Other awardees who will be honored by the White House this year are: Actor Michelle Yeoh, entrepreneur and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Jesuit Catholic priest Gregory Boyle, Assistant House Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), former Labor and Education Secretary and former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), journalist and former daytime talkshow host Phil Donahue, World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers (posthumous), former Vice President Al Gore, civil rights activist and lawyer Clarence B. Jones, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) (posthumous), Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, educator and activist Opal Lee, astronaut and former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Ellen Ochoa, astronomer Jane Rigby, United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero, and Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe (posthumous).
National
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Delegates also voted for other LGBTQ-inclusive measures
The United Methodist Church on Wednesday removed a ban on gay clergy that was in place for more than 40 years, voting to also allow LGBTQ weddings and end prohibitions on the use of United Methodist funds to “promote acceptance of homosexuality.”
Overturning the policy forbidding the church from ordaining “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” effectively formalized a practice that had caused an estimated quarter of U.S. congregations to leave the church.
The New York Times notes additional votes “affirming L.G.B.T.Q. inclusion in the church are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.” Wednesday’s measures were passed overwhelmingly and without debate. Delegates met in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the church’s General Council on Finance and Administration, there were 5,424,175 members in the U.S. in 2022 with an estimated global membership approaching 10 million.
The Times notes that other matters of business last week included a “regionalization” plan, which gave autonomy to different regions such that they can establish their own rules on matters including issues of sexuality — about which international factions are likelier to have more conservative views.
Rev. Kipp Nelson of St. Johns’s on the Lake Methodist Church in Miami shared a statement praising the new developments:
“It is a glorious day in the United Methodist Church. As a worldwide denomination, we have now publicly proclaimed the boundless love of God and finally slung open the doors of our church so that all people, no matter their identities or orientations, may pursue the calling of their hearts.
“Truly, all are loved and belong here among us. I am honored to serve as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for such a time as this, for our future is bright and filled with hope. Praise be, praise be.”
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