Black Gay Veterans Salute Possible Repeal Of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Black gay military veterans applaud the Pentagon discussion calling for repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," but one veteran fears a year-long study of the issue is a political move to modify existing policy, not repeal it altogether.

The veterans, Ray J. Chism, 67, a Vietnam-era veteran who served four years in the Air Force before being honorably discharged, and Marquell Smith, 28, who served 6 1/2 years in the Marine Corps, before being discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," both said they were thrilled the discussion is taking place. The Marines promoted Smith to sergeant, and the Air Force promoted Chism to E-3.

Chism, who lives in New York, and Smith, a Chicago resident, said if the Pentagon repeals "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" it would affirm that a person's sexual orientation has nothing to do with his or her job performance.
"At one time, 15 Marines reported to me," says Smith, a former Marine administrator. "My sexual orientation did not prevent me from getting out of bed at 3 a.m. to pick up a drunk Marine from jail or doing my job. A person's sexual orientation has nothing to do with his job performance."

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen admitted as much Tuesday, Feb. 2, when he testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mullen told committee members he served with gay men, and believed the 17-year-old policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," should be repealed. "Service members should not be forced to lie about who they are," Mullen said.

The next day former Joint Chief of Staff Chairman Colin Powell said the policy should be reviewed, reversing his earlier position, calling "Don't Ask, Don't tell" a healthy compromise.

President Barack Obama said during his State of the Union address he would work to repeal the ban, which if accomplished, would be one of the biggest changes to the armed forces since President Harry Truman issued an executive order integrating the military in 1948.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates wants to study for a year the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" before moving ahead with any changes, but Smith says there is nothing preventing the Defense Department from lifting the ban now as Truman did when he ordered the armed forces to open all branches to blacks. "It's politics," Smith says. "Democrats are expected to lose seats in the upcoming elections, and the country's mood could change about this issue."

President Bill Clinton implemented "Don't Ask, Don't tell," in 1993. Intended as a compromise, the policy enabled gay men and women to remain in the service if they remained silent about their sexual orientation. Smith said "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," however, forced military personnel to defend themselves against rumors they were gay or be discharged. In Smith's case, he sought help, believing he had been exposed to HIV-AIDS. His sergeant assumed Smith was gay, leading to his discharge in July 2006.
Before "Don't Ask, Don't Tell,"Smith said the armed forces had to prove uniformed personnel were homosexual before the military could discharge them from the armed forces.

Gary J. Gates, a distinguished scholar at the UCLA School Law's Williams Institute and author of the 2004 research paper "Gay Men and Lesbians in the U.S. Military: Estimates From Census 2000," said "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" cost the military $290 million to $500 million discharging gay military personnel under the policy.

Chism served in the Air Force from 1963 to 1967, predating by 26 years 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
When he joined the Air Force at 20, he denied having homosexual relationships, although he did. In the Air Force, Chism said he kept his homosexuality mostly to himself.

"It was a trying experience. only three or four guys knew I was gay," he says. He escaped suffering a double dose of discrimination because he was both black and gay. "I did not suffer a double stigma because I kept being gay to myself," he says. Veterans who withhold their sexual orientation can suffer from long-term post traumatic stress syndrome because of a lack of social support, Kevin O'Brien, a licensed clinical social worker for the Veterans Administration, told Gay Military Signal, a newsletter for gay veterans.

Smith said being black made him more willing to fight to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." He has lobbied members of Congress to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" on behalf of the Service Members Legal Defense Network. The network's lawyers represent gay men and lesbians discharged or facing dismissal under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

The Air Force honorably discharged Chism, and he moved to New York from Atlanta to care for an ailing uncle. Chism joined the Army Reserve, but military officials questioned the living arrangement, and the Army refused him an opportunity to re-enlist in the military. The Army Reserve released him with a less than a honorable discharge. The Marines discharged Smith with a general discharge under honorable conditions. He is seeking to upgrade his discharge.

Gary Gates estimates, based on analyzing census data, 66,000 gay men and lesbians serve in the military, including 13,000 on active duty and 53,000 in the reserves and National Guard. Gates did not estimate the number of black gay men and black lesbians in the active military, National Guard and reserves. If the Pentagon lifts the ban, the military could attract an estimated 36,700 recruits.

Denny Meyer, president of American Veterans for Equal Rights, a New York-based volunteer organization for gay veterans, estimates 1.4 million gay men and women have served in the armed forces since World War II. Meyer's figures include those who self-identify as bisexual.

Although repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," means individuals will be able to serve in the military regardless of their sexual orientation, he is bitter the military made him hide his homosexuality.

"I feel it is too little too late," says Chism, now a retired New York City employee.

Smith, who is completing work on an undergraduate degree in business at Chicago's DePaul University, also feels bittersweet about having been forced to leave the service after the Marines selected him as an officer candidate. He planned to make a career in the Marines.

"I could not go to store and buy the experience I received in the Marines. If the ban is lifted, I would consider reenlisting," he says. ^ Top|Share

Unemployment Rate Drops Except For Blacks

The nation's unemployment rate fell in January but not for black men and women.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, Feb. 4, the unemployment rate fell to 9.7% from 10% in December as jobs disappeared in construction, transportation and warehousing, but temporary help services and retailers added jobs.

The jobless rate for white men 20 years old and older declined to 9.1% in January compared with 9.3% in December on a seasonally adjusted basis.

Black-male unemployment for men 20 years old and older rose to 17.6% in January compared with 16.6% in December on a seasonally adjusted basis. In January, approximately 1.4 million black men were jobless, looking for work. In December, 1.3 million black men were jobless, looking for work. Businesses employed 6.56 million black men in January compared with 6.59 million in December, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Unemployment among black women 20 years old and older on a seasonally adjusted basis rose to 13.3% in January compared with 13.1% in December. Last month, approximately 1.19 million black women were unemployed compared with 1.17 million in December.

Overall, the unemployment rate for blacks was 16.5%, 8.7% for whites, 12.6% for Hispanics and 8.4% for Asians. The unemployment rate for Asians was not seasonally adjusted.

Because of the terrible economy, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported there were 1.1 million discouraged workers in January compared with 734,000 a year earlier. Discouraged workers do not look for work because they don't believe jobs are available.

Last month, the nation lost jobs because of cuts in construction, warehousing and transportation. Construction jobs declined 75,000 in January; transportation employment fell by 19,000 jobs.

On the other hand, temporary help services added 52,000 jobs, and retail added 42,000 jobs. Health care added 15,000 jobs in January ^ Top|Share

International Civil Rights Center & Museum

Museum Opens, Honoring 4 Students Who Ignited A National Movement

The International Civil Rights Center & Museum opened last week, honoring four black North Carolina Agricultural & Technical college students whose courageous decision to sit down at a whites-only lunch counter in the F.W. Woolworth store in Greensboro, N.C., set off a black-student revolution across the South, protesting racial segregation.

Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, Ezell Blair, Jr. and David Richmond, college freshmen, sat down at Woolworth's lunch counter Feb. 1, 1960.

A waitress refused to serve them, but the students remained, leaving at the end of the day. They returned the next day, joined by 20 others, including white coeds from a local women's college.

The sit-ins, as they were called, launched direct-action protests, and in April 1960, sit-in participants established the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which empowered black people at the local level. Within days, thousands of students across the South staged sit-ins protesting race discrimination that looked beyond legalistic and legislative goals of the NAACP and other groups.

The International Civil Rights
Center & Museum

The museum, housed on two floors totaling 30,000 square feet, includes an original portion of the lunch counter and stools where the four students sat.The museum's other exhibits include "All Men are Created Equal" that explains Jim Crow laws. Another exhibit is the "Hall of Shame," which explores the violent transition from the vestiges of slavery to the civil rights movement and "The Movement that Changed America." This exhibit is a filmed reenactment of the Greensboro Four on the night of Jan. 31, 1960, and their decision to take action the next day. The Lunch Counter Experience is the next exhibit. It is a filmed recreation of the six-month effort to integrate Woolworth's lunch counter.

"The Portal" is an exhibit about the Greensboro Rail Depot, one of the major stops for southbound trains entering Jim Crow South. It is followed by the exhibit titled "Access Denied: The Battle for Equality of Opportunity." This exhibit focuses on discrimination in every aspect of society. The final exhibit is "I'll Make A World," which celebrates accomplishments of African Americans and institutions created to serve their communities.
^ Top|Share

Imari Obadele, President, Republic Of New Afrika, Dies

Imari Obadele, president, Republic of New Afrika, died Jan. 18 following a stroke in Atlanta. He was 79.

Mr. Obadele proposed removing from the union Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi and South Carolina and giving the states to African Americans, which would have become the Republic of New Afrika. The Republic of New Afrika was headquartered for a time in Jackson, Miss.

Mr. Obadele sought separation, following the 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
A defender of armed struggle for blacks, Obadele demanded the land as payment to blacks for 300 years of slavery. He also asked for billions of dollars, becoming a leader of the reparations movement.

Mr. Obadele was born Richard Bullock Henry in Philadelphia on May 2, 1930. One of 12 children, he founded with his brother Milton a civil rights organization that invited W.E. B. DuBois as speaker. Milton moved to Detroit, and Odadele followed. Milton was close to Malcolm X. After Malcolm X's murder in 1965, Mr. Odadele and Milton organized the Malcolm X Society to spread his views.

A Temple University Ph.D in political science, Mr. Obadele taught at several colleges including Prairie View A&M University in Texas. He is survived by two sons and a daughter. ^ Top|Share