Homophobia in camouflage

There was once a time when black people could not join the military. There was also once a time when women could not join the military.

Fortunately, legislation passed in 1866 and 1942 , respectively, changed all of that and got the ball rolling on fighting discrimination in America.

Since the very beginning of our nation’s history, certain Americans have been chipping away at the foundation of prejudice and inequality in order to make a more democratic and equal United States – and we’ve come a long way.

Despite our progress over the years, however, there remains a group of people who still can’t choice to one of the most honorable things possible – serve their country in battle.

The people I am referring to here are homosexuals.

For years young men and women looking to join the military had to identify their sexual orientation on their enlistment form. And if they admitted to being gay, they were rejected.

Then in 1993 President Bill Clinton took the biggest leap in history for gay rights in the military when he signed the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy. Basically, the bill said the government wouldn’t ask an enlisting private if he/she were gay as long as he/she didn’t say they were gay.

It was a compromise between banning homosexuals entirely and allowing them to serve while being open about their sexuality.

But the policy is not exactly justice.

As soon as a soldier admits to his/her sexual orientation, he/she is discharged.

This is the one of best examples of the lack of acceptance that has plagued this country since its earlier hour.

Whether or not a soldier is gay is nobody’s damn business. A soldier enlists in the military because he/she wants to serve the country and rejecting an aspiring private simply because of what he/she likes in bed is as discriminatory as anything I’ve ever heard.

But, good news might be on the horizon for homosexual patriots.

Representative Marty Meehan (D-Mass) has reintroduced a bill that would repeal the military’s policy on barring gays. It would allow gay and lesbian soldiers to serve while open about their homosexuality.

Meehan proposed the bill last year with 122 co-sponsors, but it got squashed in the Republican-lead Congress. But this year the Dems have control and, thus, the bill has a better chance of passing.

According to Meehan, the bill now has more than 100 co-sponsors and seven freshmen.

It even has the support of three Republicans – one of which is Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida.

She says she is in favor of the bill because her husband, Dexter, was cared for by a lesbian nurse when he was wounded in combat in Vietnam.

But even with the increasing support, this whole thing is still pretty embarrassing.

Every member of the US Congress should be trying to get this bill passed. That is, at least, if they consider themselves real Americans.

The United States is supposed to be the land of equality and freedom. Whites, blacks, Orientals, gays/lesbians, fat people, short people, tall people should all be treated equal by the law.

Every time someone is treated differently because of who they are, it spits in the face of everything America is meant to be.

The US in supposed to the ‘home of the free’ and whenever a group of people that are a little different than the norm are discriminated against it is like someone wiping their mouth with the American flag.

Since the policy was signed into law, 11,000 soldiers – almost the amount as one army division – have been kicked out of the armed forces simply for coming out of the closet. Of those 11,000, 38 have been Arabic translators.

The people who sent us into Iraq and are now scrounging for more military recruits are the same people booting soldiers out because of what they like to do in their bedrooms.

Attention politicians: If you want to keep gays and lesbians out of the armed services, you are not real Americans. You are pseudo-American bigots and a disgrace to this nation.

Any citizen that is willing to take up arms to defend his/her country should be praised – not discriminated against when discovering what they like in the sheets.

Who the hell is writing the military protocol anyway? Tim Hardaway?

It’s certainly not the American troops – that’s for sure.

According to a survey conducted by both combat and non-combat units, 73 percent of US military members say they would feel comfortable serving with openly gay and lesbian comrades. And more than one in five soldiers polled said they already know for certain that someone in their unit is homosexual and that they are fine with it.

So don’t even try suggesting those pinheads that are opposed to gays and lesbians being in the military are trying to keep the best interest of the troops in mind. The soldiers say they’re fine with it. It is merely a bunch of idiotic, homophobic numbskulls that want discriminate against people to keep their own ‘ideal’ America intact.

Well, morons, enough is enough.