Source: 365Gay.com
Author(s): 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Date: February 25, 2008

(Santa Barbara, California) A new survey of officers in the military believe that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" should be maintained. Only 22 percent of officers said that the ban on gays serving openly should be repealed.

The survey was conducted by the Center for a New American Security and by the journal Foreign Policy. Some 3,000 active duty and retired officers at or above the rank of major or lieutenant commander were questioned during December, 2007 and January, 2008.

"These new data are consistent with other surveys which show that among the officer corps, there is little support for repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell,'" said Dr. Aaron Belkin, director of the Palm Center, a research institute at the University of California, Santa Barbara that has conducted extensive studies on gays and lesbians in the military.

The new poll included a question, "Which of the following steps do you support to increase recruiting numbers in the U.S. military (choose all that apply)."

Fifty-eight percent said that the military should "allow a larger percentage of those who have GED but not a high school diploma" and 38 percent said that the draft should be reinstated. Only 7 percent said that the "use of criminal, health, and other 'waivers' for service" should be used. Respondents were not given a "don't know," "maybe" or "unsure" option.

A separate poll, conducted in the fall of 2006, by Zogby International, found that a majority of enlisted men and women, however, don't care if they are serving with someone who is a homosexual.

Three-out-of-four members of the military who are serving in Iraq or recently returned home said they don't care if someone in their unit is gay.

The poll also found that nearly one in four U.S. troops say they know for sure that someone in their unit is gay or lesbian, and of those 59% said they learned about the person's sexual orientation directly from the individual.

Since the ban on gays serving openly was implemented a decade ago more than 11,000 men and women have been dismissed under "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" according to the Government Accountability Office.

The number of gays and lesbians who have attempted to enlist and rejected because they said they were gay is not known.

A study conducted last year for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network concluded that the U.S. military could attract as many as 41,000 new recruits if gays and lesbians in the military were able to be open about their sexual orientation.

The Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which would repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and allow gays to serve openly has been reintroduced in Congress and has bipartisan support.

The bill is unlikely to get out of committee during this election year, but hearings could be held.

©365Gay.com 2008