[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 665 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 665

 Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the ``Don`t Ask, 
                   Don't Tell, Don't Pursue'' policy.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 20, 2021

   Mr. Takano (for himself, Mr. Pappas, and Mr. Pocan) submitted the 
  following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed 
                                Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the ``Don`t Ask, 
                   Don't Tell, Don't Pursue'' policy.

Whereas 10 years ago, on September 20, 2011, the repeal of the policy known as 
        ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue'' took effect, officially allowing 
        lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) members of the 
        Armed Forces to serve openly and without concealing their sexual 
        orientation;
Whereas the ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' policy, which held that ``[t]he presence 
        in the armed forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to 
        engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high 
        standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion which 
        are the essence of military capability'', was codified in the fiscal 
        year 1994 National Defense Authorization Act, which was signed into law 
        by President Bill Clinton on November 30, 1993;
Whereas, under ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'', any member of the Armed Forces that 
        stated they were homosexual or bisexual, engaged or attempted to engage 
        in ``homosexual acts'', or married or attempted to marry someone of the 
        same sex could be discharged for violating policy; however, the law 
        itself did not prevent servicemembers from being asked about their 
        sexuality;
Whereas, while the intention of the policy was to eliminate the outright ban on 
        LGBTQ members in the military that existed prior to 1993, it created an 
        environment which permitted LGBTQ individuals to serve on the condition 
        that they never identify themselves as nonheterosexual, either through 
        actions or words;
Whereas, in the 18-year span that ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' served as official 
        policy, over 13,000 servicemembers were discharged as a result of the 
        policy;
Whereas the experience of swearing to uphold an uncompromising oath of integrity 
        while actively hiding their sexual orientation had significant 
        psychological impacts on LGBTQ servicemembers, as well as both long- and 
        short-term mental and physical impacts;
Whereas surveys of LGBTQ veterans that served under ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' 
        and predecessor policies that forced the concealment of LGBTQ identity 
        reveal heightened instances of panic attacks, phobias, substance abuse, 
        and other mental health conditions, including a heightened risk of 
        suicide, independent of already-existing combat and service-related 
        mental health risks;
Whereas female members of the Armed Forces were particularly impacted by ``Don't 
        Ask, Don't Tell'', and in 2007, women comprised only about 15 percent of 
        military personnel but nearly 50 percent of the discharges under the 
        policy, likely due to the heightened vulnerability of women in the 
        military to sexual harassment and the subsequent retaliation of 
        harassers against women;
Whereas many servicemembers who were discharged under ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' 
        received discharge paperwork, known as ``DD Form 214'', with 
        stigmatizing and identifying codes indicating homosexuality as the 
        reason for separation, recorded on the same paperwork that is used to 
        screen veterans for employment, access Department of Veterans Affairs 
        benefits and services, and determine eligibility for reenlistment, 
        meaning that veterans could still face discrimination and be denied 
        access to these opportunities long after leaving the military;
Whereas there are countless individual impacts that resulted from ``Don't Ask, 
        Don't Tell'' which cannot be easily quantified or categorized, including 
        the stresses of maintaining secrecy with health care providers and law 
        enforcement, isolation or alienation from peers, and persistent fear of 
        discovery, to name a few common experiences;
Whereas, by the nature of the policy, there was no mechanism by which an active 
        servicemember could openly protest, give testimony, or otherwise 
        publicly speak about their experience serving under ``Don't Ask, Don't 
        Tell'' without risking investigation and discharge;
Whereas LGBTQ members of the Armed Forces nonetheless demonstrated great 
        resiliency and courage, creating underground networks to offer support 
        to one another and covertly supplying anonymous information on LGBTQ 
        experiences in the military to Pentagon researchers for the 2010 
        Department of Defense report that outlined the path to repeal;
Whereas, after nearly two decades of activism and advocacy, the Don't Ask, Don't 
        Tell Repeal Act of 2010 was signed on December 22, 2010, by President 
        Barack Obama; and
Whereas the ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' repeal was certified to comply with 
        Department of Defense recommendations and standards on July 22, 2011, 
        and took effect 60 days later on September 20, 2011: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the deep and lasting harm caused by the 
        policy known as ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue'', as 
        well as other policies of the Armed Forces that had an adverse 
        and prejudicial impact on its members;
            (2) commemorates the repeal of ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' as 
        a day in which members of the military, regardless of their 
        sexual orientation, were free to serve openly and to be honored 
        for their service without caveat; and
            (3) reaffirms its commitment to honor the service of all 
        members of the military, both former and current, regardless of 
        their gender identity or sexual orientation, and continue 
        working to foster inclusion and diversity in the Armed Forces.
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