Homosexuals in the Military
Homosexuals in the MilitaryHomosexuals have been excluded from our society since our
country's beginning, giving them no equal protection underneath the
large branch of the law. The Emancipation Proclamation gave freedom to
blacks from slavery in the 1800's and women were given the freedoms
reserved for males in the early 1900's with the women's suffrage
movement. But everyone still knows the underlying feeling of nation in
dealing with minorities and women, one of contempt and utter disgust.
Hate crimes are still perpetrated to this day in this country, and
most are unpublicized and "swept underneath the rug." The general
public is just now dealing with the struggle of Homosexuals to gain
rights in America, although this persecution is subtle, quiet and
rarely ever seen to the naked eye or the general public.
The big question today in Homosexuals rights struggles are
dealing with the right to be a part of our country's Military Forces.
At the forefront of the struggle to gain access to the military has
been Female's who have tried to gain access to "All Men" facilities
and have been pressured out by other cadets. This small group of women
have fought hard, and pressured the Government to change regulations
dealing with the inclusion of all people, whether female or male, and
giving them all the same opportunities they deserve. The Homosexual
struggle with our Nation's Armed Forces has been acquiring damage and
swift blows for over 60 years now, and now they too are beginning to
fight back.
With the public knowledge of "initiation rights" into many
elite groups of the military, the general public is beginning to
realize how exclusive the military can be. One cadet said after "hell
week" in the Marines, "It was almost like joining a fraternity, but
the punishments were 1000 times worse than ever imagined, and the
Administration did not pretend to turn there back, they were
instrumental in the brutality." The intense pressure of "hell week" in
the Marines drove a few to wounding themselves, go AWOL, and a few
even took there own life. People who are not "meant to be" in the
Military are usually weeded out during these "initiations" and forced
either to persevere or be discharged dishonorably. The military in the
United States has become an elite society, a society where only few
survive.
In a survey taken in 1990, the United States population on a
whole is believed to consist of 13-15% Homosexuals. This figure is
believed to have a margin of error on the upward swing due to the fact
that most homosexuals are still "afraid" of their sexuality and the
social taboos it carries along with it. With so many Homosexuals in
the United States, how can the military prove its exclusion policy
against Homosexuals correct and moral? Through the "long standing
tradition and policy," says...
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