Civil rights leader, Martin Luther King once said, "When our days become dreary with low-hovering clouds of despair, and when our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, let us remember that there is a creative force in this universe, working to pull down the gigantic mountains of evil, a power that is able to make a way out of no way and transform dark yesterdays into bright tomorrows. Let us realize the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice." Yesterday, in a 65-31 vote in the US Senate, the recent bastion of hopelessness where most legislation dies in a filibustery death, a 17-year old policy that has ended the careers of thousands of Americans was itself ended. Don't Ask, Don't Tell was legislatively voted down 65-31.
This blog is usually the forum by which I rant and rave about social injustice, as I did about this issue in May of this year:
http://pooniethegreat.blogspot.com/2010/05/revolution-is-scary-but-evolution-is.html
Much of what I said then is true today and will be true when the policy is finally enacted by our nation's military forces. A part of me is somewhat saddened by the fact that I will most likely not be in the military when this policy is lifted to see and support my gay and lesbian brothers and sisters in arms finally serve their country without the threat of having their careers involuntarily ended for something as benign as who they love. But as I was watching the initial procedural vote yesterday, where the Senate was voting on whether to allow the repeal vote to occur, I was riveted. So many times, the repeal of this policy seemed certain, only for our hope to be pulled away like Lucy does to Charlie Brown. Counting the names of Senators that said "Yes" to ensure that there will be no filibuster... I found myself shocked and awed when the little tick marks I wrote on a piece of scrap paper reached 60. True, this did not mean that the repeal was passed. There still needed to have been another vote. But, once it was past filibuster, DADT was dying.
While I was unable to watch the actual final vote from the Senate regarding repeal, I was checking my Twitter feed constantly... and when 65-31 popped up. I felt a profound sense of joy and damn near had tears well up in my eyes. It was like if simutaneously the Chicago Bears, Chicago Bulls, Chicago White Sox, Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Fire, and Chicago Red Stars all simutaneously won their respective league championships by a score of 65-31. I stared at my phone and realized that the military I will be leaving WILL be better than the one I had joined. And the gay and lesbian comrades that I have, will have a career that will not be cut short by a policy that has a foundation in irrational discriminatory rhetoric that does not stand the test of logic or moral justice. And for once, my hope in humanity was not diminished by the news of a day, but in fact strengthened. The spirit of the season is amplified in my soul. Thank you Patrick Murphy, Nancy Pelosi, Joe Lieberman, Susan Collins, Harry Reid, and all of the Republican Senators that chose on correct side of history and did not lock step with conservative talking points.
It will be interesting to see what will happen in the coming months and the coming years. There are no doubt countless people who saw the vote yesterday with feelings of dread to feelings of intense hatred for what has happened to "their military." To them I say, it is not YOUR military. It is OUR military. And the Pentagon survey has indicated that OUR military, for the most part, does not care if The Gay is among us. There will be growing pains, as there always is with change. But anyone who knows the military knows that we make things work, no matter what.
Something that profoundly disturbed me yesterday was listening to the irrational ramblings of a man whose time of coherent thought has long passed. While I respect his career, his life, and his experiences in the military... Senator John McCain's testimony regarding the repeal of DADT was hurtful to the gay and lesbian men and women that are serving and that have served our nation's military. And the even sadder part? There are those that believe and support him in his homophobic fears of a military that will collapse because the guy or gal next to you is gay.
The repealing of Don't Ask, Don't Tell will not result in a gay pride parade sprouting up in the hallways and battlefields near you. For straight people, the repeal of DADT WILL NOT AFFECT YOU. True, you may see your co-worker or battle buddy display pictures of their real significant others or tell you the truth about what they were doing last weekend and who their "roommate" or "best friend" really are. Does that change the fact that you are still straight? Does that change the fact that your co-worker or battle buddy is still the same person that they were before you saw that picture and before they told you the truth about who they love? No and no. The laws and regulations regarding professional behavior are still in effect. You will not get raped in the shower. You will not get hit on and sexually harassed. You will not be forced to abandon your religious beliefs. These things will not happen any more than they do now. Because gay or straight, rape, sexual harassment, and sexual assault will be as illegal post-DADT as it was pre-DADT. Your religious beliefs will not be compromised any more than they are now. Gay people will not blockade your route to church, they will not take away Christmas or your birthday. Gay people will just be the guy or gal that you've worked with pre-DADT. Most gay people probably won't even come out to you. You're not that important or special. Get over yourselves.
For gay people, the post-DADT world is one where they can truly embrace the Core Values that they have signed up for. Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity and Personal Courage for the Soldiers. Honor, Courage, and Commitment for the Sailors and Marines. Integrity, Service, and Excellence for the Airmen. There will no longer be the fear that if someone saw you with the wrong person at the wrong time at the wrong place that your career can be jeopardized. People can truly thank their friends and real families at ceremonies. People can go to functions with someone they care about without reprecussions. No, that is not "rubbing it in the faces" of straight people. It's equality. Happiness is not exclusive to straight people.
And on both sides of the issue, I really hope that the inherent idiocy of humanity does not rear its ugly head too much. There will be incidents. There will be bad seeds ruining things for the good. We must keep in mind that not all straight people are bigots. And not all gay people are on the extreme end of the rainbow. It will be through the strength of leadership that the post-DADT world can exist and that there will be equal punishment for the homophobes and the homosexuals, should either act like fools. Now is time to not just be appointed leaders, but to be real leaders and look your peers and subordinates in the eye and say, "No, do your job or find another one." And if you can't do that... maybe you should seek employment elsewhere as well. Because if that's the case I can do your job better.
I look forward to the coming months and years. It is a whole new world opening up but yet it's merely the fulfillment of an old world promise:
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
