[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 135 (Monday, September 29, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S12133]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, this November marks 10 years since our 
Nation imposed the discriminatory law known as ``Don't Ask, Don't 
Tell'' on the lesbian, gay, and bisexual patriots of our Nation. During 
the past decade, almost 10,000 men and women have been fired from our 
Armed Forces simply because of their sexual orientation.
  Many of those men and women have sought the assistance and advocacy 
of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, SLDN, the Nation's only legal 
aid and advocacy organization for those harmed by the military's gay 
ban. In August, SLDN's executive director, C. Dixon Osburn, 
commemorated 10 years of service to the organization he founded and the 
brave Americans it serves. Mr. Osburn cofounded the organization in 
1993 with former Army CPT Michelle Benecke.
  Under Mr. Osburn's leadership, SLDN has provided legal services to 
5,000 service members and obtained 35 changes in military policy and 
practice related to ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue, Don't 
Harass.'' Also under his leadership, SLDN's policy efforts have 
included obtaining new Pentagon and Service policies on anti-gay 
harassment, an Executive order on hate crimes in the military and an 
Executive order providing, for the first time, a limited 
psychotherapist privilege in the armed forces.
  Due in large part to Mr. Osburn's work, The Boston Globe has said 
``[SLDN] knows far more than the Pentagon about what reality is like in 
the military and helps individuals caught in the mess.'' Deb Price of 
The Detroit News also commended their work, nothing that: ``SLDN has 
repeatedly forced the Pentagon not just to take notice, but to 
change.'' And the Nation reports, ``It's amazing how much this small 
legal-aid group has accomplished already.''
  Mr. Osburn received the 1994 GAYLAW Distinguished National Service 
Award, and the 1998 Kevin Larkin Award for Public Service from the 
Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association. In 1998, Mr. Osburn was 
named by the Advocate magazine as one of the Top 10 National Gay 
Leaders. In 2000, under Mr. Osburn's leadership, SLDN received 
``Organization of the Year'' awards from both the District of Columbia 
Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and the International Lesbian & 
Gay Museum of History. I am honored today to recognize his decade of 
leadership at the helm of SLDN and his unparalleled advocacy for our 
men and women in uniform.

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