History Of Homosexuality In The Us Military
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One of the biggest social reforms of recent history in USA is the gay revolution. From being unheard of in the early 1900’s to being decriminalized and then accepted by the end of the century, the gay rights movement has come a long way in making a place for homosexual individuals in the American society. However, the journey has not been as smooth and history of reform has not been as bright in the US Military.
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The issue of homosexuality and the US Military has had a rocky history at best. During and post World War I, the military often gave blue discharge to homosexual servicemen. In 1947 the blue discharges were replaced by the term “general” or “undesirable” discharge and history witnessed that even gay servicemen who did not indulge in any homosexual activity while in service were discharged. However, with the reforms at the societal level in the late 1970’s and 1980’s, the “undesirable” discharge policy of homosexual personnel in the US Military was questioned by American public and became an election issue in 1992 US Presidential elections. In 1992-93 while campaigning for elections, Bill Clinton promised the voters that history would be changed and homosexual individuals will get equal rights in the military. With his promise in mind, the Congress passed the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy in 1993 in which the military applicants were not required to give their sexual orientation details. However, the policy did not make much reform in the actual practices within the armed forces and many homosexual servicemen were harassed while on service by their fellow servicemen. The case of Allen R Schindler Jr. will be written in history forever, in which the US Navy serviceman was brutally murdered by his fellow shipmate on the account of him being a homosexual. The case brought in light the hatred and apathy gay personnel faced in the US Military services and catapulted the issue of gay rights in armed forces to a new level. As for the current state of affairs, Barrack Obama, the current President of USA, has promised the US public to change history and bring further reforms in the US Military policy on homosexual servicemen.
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History Of Homosexuality In The Us Military