Friday February 10, 2006 SGN.org |
 |
Volume 34 Issue 06 |
 |
|
Saturday, Nov 21, 2009
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
Firing of Gay military personnel continues as army faces 'catastrophic' recruitment and retention problems |
||
 |
||
| Firing of Gay military personnel continues as army faces 'catastrophic' recruitment and retention problems | ||
| "We cannot continue to ignore the very real impact of removing ten thousand men and women from the ranks," said SLDN's Sharra. E. Greer.
Despite a new report warning of "a catastrophic decline" in recruiting and retention among Army troops, Pentagon leaders continue to fire Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual military personnel who are fighting to report for duty. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) called a new 136-page report from retired Army officer Andrew Krepinevich a "wake-up call to Congress that our armed forces must welcome, not turn away, qualified Americans who want to serve our country." The report points to the Army's 2005 recruiting slump as evidence that the Army is "in a race against time" to modernize "or risk 'breaking' the force in the form of a catastrophic decline" in recruitment and re-enlistment. That report came on the same day as news that the armed forces have fired 244 medical professionals since 1993 under the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law banning Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual service members. Since the ban's implementation, more than 10,000 men and women have been fired at a cost of more than $191 million to American tax payers. " 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' has cost our nation the talents of too many patriotic Americans," said Sharra. E. Greer, director of law and policy for SLDN. "We cannot continue to ignore the very real impact of removing ten thousand men and women from the ranks. There is no valid excuse for firing men and women who want to serve, especially when our armed forces are stretched to the breaking point. Members of Congress who want to strengthen our fighting forces should be first in line to support repeal of the military's ban." In March 2005, Representative Marty Meehan (D-MA) introduced The Military Readiness Enhancement Act (H.R. 1059), an SLDN-sponsored Congressional bill to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Currently, 107 bi-partisan Members of Congress support the legislation, including Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL). "We've tried the policy. I don't think it works," Congresswoman Ros-Lehtinen told the Miami Herald. "And we've spent a lot of money enforcing it. We investigate people, bring them up on charges, basically wreck their lives. People who've signed up to serve our country. We should be thanking them." SLDN is currently representing twelve veterans of the war on terror who are seeking re-instatement in the armed forces following their discharge under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Their lawsuit, Cook v. Rumsfeld, is pending in federal district court in Massachusetts. "Those who are fighting to serve our country should not be turned away simply because they happen to be Gay or Lesbian," Greer said. "When Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Americans are turned away, our country and our national security pay the price." A complete list of Congressional co-sponsors for The Military Readiness Enhancement Act is available online at www.sldn.org. Yesterday's report on the discharge of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual medical personnel is available from the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military, online at www.Gaymilitary.ucsb.edu. Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is a national, non-profit legal services, watchdog and policy organization dedicated to ending discrimination against and harassment of military personnel affected by 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' and related forms of intolerance. For more information, visit www.sldn.org. A SLDN press release |
||
|
|
||
 |
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
||
International Readers |
  It's new!A blog created by the SGN staff so you can be heard |
|
 |
DigitalTeamWorks presents  websites for Artists looking for a great email us for more information
|
 |
Get Your Tickets |
 |
 |
copyright Seattle Gay News - DigitalTeamWorks 2006