Dont Ask, Dont Tell Policy essays

Dont Ask, Dont Tell Policy essays The Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy of the armed forces should be enforced as to prevent personnel from not accomplishing a mission due to an interruption of morale. This policy is actually a compromise concerning the service of gays and lesbians in the United States military. In 1993, President Bill Clinton attempted to overturn the then-existing policy which mandated the immediate discharge of any military personnel found to be homosexual (Dont 2001). Although Clinton had significant support by gay rights advocates, the move was strongly opposed by the majority of military, political and religious leaders (Dont 2001). Thus, the compromise policy was agreed upon which allows homosexuals to serve as long as their sexual preferences are not openly declared and they do not engage in any homosexual activities (Dont 2001). Furthermore, military authorities must not actively seek out gay and lesbian service members (Dont 2001). The Dont Ask, Dont Tell, Dont Pursue policy ignited heated debates concerning gays and lesbians in the military. Before 1993, one of the questions on the militarys enlistment contract was Are you a homosexual, and if anyone answered yes, they were immediately disqualified (Conan 2003). Moreover, should military personnel discovered to be homosexual are in violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (Conan 2003). According to Title 10 U.S.C. # 654, unit cohesion is one of the most critical elements in combat capability. In other words, the bonds of trust among individual service members that make the combat effectiveness of a military unit greater than the sum of the combat effectiveness of the individual unit members (Policy 2006). The military community exists as a specialized society with its own laws, rules, customs, and traditions, including numerous restrictions on p...