US National GLBT Military & Veterans Organizations
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Don't Ask, Don't Tell: Debating the Gay Ban in the Military
Aaron Belkin (Editor), Geoffrey Bateman (Editor)
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Library Journal
Though it may seem like yesterday's news, the issue of "gays in the military" continues to be played out. The Pentagon's "stop loss" order after 9/11 means that the "don't ask, don't tell" policy of 1993 is in abeyance even though there have been some high-profile dismissals. Both of these books cover much the same ground. Both give excellent introductions to the history of U.S. military policy toward gays, and both provide detailed analyses of the flaws of the policy and are aimed at academic readers. Don't Ask, Don't Tell is the result of a symposium held in December 2000 at the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where Belkin and Bateman are director and assistant director, respectively. The text, which is mostly given to transcripts of sessions from the conference, raises the main issues provoked by the policy, such as a soldier's privacy, group cohesion, and the relevance of foreign experiences. Position papers are followed by discussion. Surprisingly, given the format, the process is quite focused. The editors acknowledge their failure in attracting proponents of the ban, though they tried hard to do so. Officially Gay is less policy oriented. Instead, it places military policy in the broader context of culture, using cultural theory to analyze how the policy contradicts itself. More importantly, it shows how the military has varied its stance according to circumstances and used identity as its organizing principle, neglecting distinctions between sexual actions and sexual identities. In this way, Lehring (government, Smith Coll.) makes concrete the essentialist/constructionist debates, which often get obscured by dense theory. Both books belong in academic libraries where there is interest in military affairs.
David Azzolina, Univ. of Pennsylvania Libs., Philadelphia Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
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| Can the U.S. military integrate gay personnel into
its ranks and still accomplish its mission? In 1993, this question became the center of a heated debate when President Clinton attempted to lift the long-standing ban on gays in the military. This debate persists because the compromise policy "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue," faces serious legal challenges, and is likely to go to the Supreme Court before the end of the decade. Just below the surface of this debate rages a more general argument about the status of gay people in America.
Both sides base their views on assumptions about the consequences of integration. Even defenders of the ban grudgingly acknowledge that homosexuals are fully capable of serving with distinction. Few question gay service members' abilities or patriotism; justifications for the ban are now predicated on heterosexuals' negative reactions.
Out in Force refutes the notions that homosexuality is incompatible with military service and that gay personnel would undermine order and discipline. Leading social science scholars of sexual orientation and the military offer reasoned and comprehensive discussions about military organizations, human sexuality, and attitudes toward individuals and groups. They demonstrate forcefully that the debate is really about the military as an institution, and how that institution will adapt to larger social changes. The contributors show that the ban could successfully be eliminated, and set forth a program for implementation.In sorting opinion from fact, myth from reality, Out in Force stands as an invaluable guide for the military, lawmakers, and the courts as they continue to grapple with this question of institutional and societal change. |
| Military Trade offers groundbreaking insight into: the difference between "miltary chasers" and uniform fetishists; why gay men prefer sailors and Marines over soldiers and airmen; the surprising range of sexual, "buddy," and even love relationships "chasers" form with servicemen; the nuances of "trade" and civil-military male prostitution; and what has been overlooked in the "sex panic" debate about men who have sex in public places. For anyone interested in queer theory, the construction of masculinity, or sex between men outside of gay urban culture - and for anyone who has ever thrilled at the sight of a man in uniform. |
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Barrack Buddies and Soldier Lovers: Dialogues with Gay Young Men in the U.S. Military
By Steven Zeeland |
| Gay servicemen are obliged by bitter necessity
to keep their sexual orientations a closely guarded secret. But now, 16 soldiers and airmen, all in their 20s, reveal stories of their sex lives in the armed forces. Barrack Buddies and Soldier Lovers is a voyeuristic glimpse into the secret lives of gay GIs, touching on many of their concerns. |
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