SLDN Renews Call for Repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

[julialnyc]

10 minutes ago

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To: National Desk

Contact: Steve Ralls of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, 202-328-3244 ext. 116 or [e-mail]

WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) today renewed calls for repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' the military's ban on lesbian, gay and bisexual personnel, in light of a report in USA Today in which experts predict a decline in the quality of soldiers in the U.S. Army and the ability of recruiters to find suitable replacements for soldiers predicted to leave the service.

Retired Major Bob Scales, a former director of the Army War College, told USA Today that with soldiers potentially facing a third or fourth tour of duty in Iraq, "You'll see the quality of the Army atrophy." He went on to predict increased difficulty in recruiting qualified soldiers and potential exodus of "young officers and midcareer enlisted soliders," a prediction echoed by retired Marine Corps lieutenant general Paul Van Riper. "(A) lot of key non-commissioned officers could end up leaving," Van Riper said.

"Qualification, and not orientation, should always be paramount in our nation's fighting forces," said C. Dixon Osburn, executive director of SLDN. "More and more reports paint a dire picture in terms of recruiting and retention. According to new statistics, a potential Army of an additional 41,000 lesbian, gay and bisexual Americans are ready and willing to serve once the discriminatory law of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is repealed once and for all. Our armed forces can attract qualified, capable men and women simply by lifting the gay ban. There is no justification for continuing to disqualify those men and women from service and there is every reason -- now, more than ever -- to welcome them."

According to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, the armed forces have fired more than 800 specialists with skills deemed 'critical' by the Department of Defense since the gay ban was implemented in 1993. The armed forces have also implemented policies some argue will decrease the quality of the armed forces. One policy is to increase the maximum age for new enlistees to forty-two. The Army has also relaxed restrictions on recruits with prior criminal records, including some drug offenses. "Once you start down that slope," retired Army Col. Angelo Perri, who served two tours in Vietnam, recently told The State newspaper, "it gets slippery."

"The Army and Army Guard are projected to fall short of their 2005 recruiting goals by several thousand new soldiers," Osburn said. "The American people are underwriting bonuses for those who sign up and extend tours. All the while, the military is firing, and refusing to enlist, American who want to serve and are qualified to do so. Those who care about military readiness should be first in line to demand an end to 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'"

For more information on Congressional efforts to repeal the military's ban and a new study showing 41,000 potential recruits after repeal of the military's ban, visit http://www.sldn.org.

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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 http://www.sldn.org.

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