[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 142 (Thursday, September 22, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        ON THE OCCASION OF THE END OF ``DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL''

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 22, 2011

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the military's ``Don't Ask, 
Don't Tell'' (DADT) policy officially ended.
  Yesterday, J.D. Smith, a 25 year-old Air Force officer and gay rights 
advocate could drop his pseudonym and come out as who he is--1st 
Lieutenant Josh Seefried.
  Yesterday, Maj. Darrel Choat, a gay Marine officer wrote in The 
Washington Post: ``I am a patriotic American. I am an officer who loves 
country and Corps. I am doing my best to serve honorably and proudly. 
And I happen to be gay.''
  Yesterday, a policy that since 1993 has led to over 14,000 
servicemembers being fired simply for being open about their sexual 
orientation officially ended, allowing Major Choat, 1st Lt. Seefried 
and thousands of other servicemembers to continue their service in the 
U.S. military without having to hide who they are.
  Policies like ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'', which created an atmosphere 
of fear and mistrust among colleagues serving side-by-side, have no 
place in the military.
  I applaud the official end of ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' and the 
significance of its repeal in ensuring equality in our military and in 
securing rights for members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and 
Transgender community.

     When Will Marine Leadership Stand Up for Gay Service Members?

                           (By Darrel Choat)

       If President Obama could have ended ``don't ask, don't 
     tell'' by announcing a policy change, rather than his intent 
     to work with Congress to repeal the law, in his 2010 State of 
     the Union address, I might have served in the Marines openly 
     but quietly. But the repeal debate turned ugly, and as gay 
     veterans and gay soldiers and Marines serving in Iraq and 
     Afghanistan were disrespected by military and civilian 
     leaders, I realized that a quiet transition was not an 
     honorable course of action.
       Remarks by senior Marine leaders made clear that their 
     conception of ``Marine'' did not include those who were gay. 
     During and following his confirmation hearings in fall 2010, 
     Commandant Gen. James F. Amos said that he did not want his 
     Marines dying because of a ``distraction.'' He probably meant 
     that managing the repeal would be a distraction, but many gay 
     Marines, myself included, felt that Amos was saying that we 
     were the distraction that would get our fellow Marines 
     killed. Given the number of gay Marines in combat, this 
     comment was deeply hurtful.
       I am a patriotic American. I am an officer who loves 
     country and Corps. I am doing my best to serve honorably and 
     proudly. And I happen to be gay.
       My challenge is not to simply acknowledge my sexuality as a 
     Marine officer but for my actions to reflect the legacy of 
     the Declaration of Independence--that all Americans are 
     created equal and deserve equal consideration from their 
     government. My task is to demand no less from my country and 
     Corps. I understand that my statements will prompt anger and 
     disgust among some active-duty and retired Marines. History 
     demonstrates, however, that deliberate steps are necessary to 
     overcome the legacy of dishonor and prejudice such as that 
     inspired by ``don't ask, don't tell.'' I have confidence that 
     my Corps will take those steps.
       While working in the Senate in the 1990s, I remember Sen. 
     Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) taking to the floor and disparaging the 
     ``agenda'' of gays and their ``sinful'' and ``deviant'' 
     behavior. I felt helpless. One day Helms stepped into an 
     elevator in which I alone was riding. Slowly, I realized no 
     words could be adequate to confront him. His hate and 
     ignorance could not be rationally discussed. The only 
     effective course, it seemed to me, would be to disprove him 
     by example, by personifying a proud, honorable and gay 
     American who--simply by existing--refuted Helms's 
     demagoguery.
       I came out to my family years earlier, and I had long been 
     in the habit of letting co-workers become aware of my sexual 
     orientation. Often I made no pronouncements. Engaging in 
     honest discussions about weekend activities or personal 
     relationships was all that was necessary. My guiding 
     principle was simple: If I felt I had to say something or 
     compromise out of fear or shame because I was gay, I had to 
     stop and take the honest course. If I got fired, I got fired. 
     No job was worth the sacrifice of my honor and courage.
       In 1981, I had been awarded a four-year Marine Corps 
     Reserve Officer Training Corps scholarship. I was aware that 
     I was different--I hated being different--and I was self-
     conscious. I found it difficult to interact with other 
     midshipmen and Marines, so I left the program. In 1997, 
     however, I knew that ``don't ask, don't tell'' did not 
     preclude my service; it simply required that I shut up about 
     being gay. So I applied and was accepted to attend Officer 
     Candidate School in Quantico in October 1997. I greatly 
     underestimated the personal cost of this compromise.
       After the Battle of Saipan in 1944, Marine Commandant Gen. 
     Alexander Vandegrift said, ``The Negro Marines are no longer 
     on trial. They are Marines, period.'' His predecessor, Gen. 
     Thomas Holcomb, had said that ``Negroes did not have the 
     right to demand a place in the corps'' and that ``If it were 
     a question of having a Marine Corps of 5,000 whites or 
     250,000 Negroes, I would rather have the whites.'' It took 
     leadership for Vandegrift to recognize the heroic service of 
     African American Marines and end officially sanctioned 
     segregation in the Corps.
       While Sgt. Maj. Micheal Barrett, the service's senior 
     enlisted official, clearly stated in June that a Marine is a 
     Marine, regardless of sexual orientation, I am aware of no 
     senior Marine officer who has followed Vandegrift's lead and 
     set a leadership tone that will turn the page on the 
     prejudice of the past. A January video by Amos and Barrett's 
     predecessor, Sgt. Maj. Carlton Kent, sent the message simply 
     that the don't-ask law has changed and that Marines follow 
     the law. Action to overcome the legacy of ``don't ask, don't 
     tell'' is still necessary.
       Vandegrift is an example of the possible. With the formal 
     repeal today of ``don't ask, don't tell,'' it is time for the 
     Marine Corps to end the bigotry and prejudice regarding 
     sexual orientation and to give Marines, combat veterans and 
     Purple Heart recipients the respect and consideration they 
     have earned. Marine Maj. Darrel Choat, a student at the 
     Marine Corps University in Quantico, is the author of a 
     report and personal essay in ``The End of Don't Ask, Don't 
     Tell,'' a forthcoming book from Marine Corps University 
     Press. The views expressed here are his own.

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