Groups To Observe 14th Anniversary Of DADT At National Mall
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

Posted: November 27, 2007 - 3:00 pm ET

(Washington) Five national gay rights groups will hold a tribute to the 12,000 men and women drummed out of the armed forces under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" the ban on gays serving openly in the military.

Called "12,000 Flags for 12,000 Patriots" it will be held on the National Mall beginning on Friday, November 30 -  the 14th anniversary of DADT being signed into law - and continue through Sunday, December 2nd.

The event is sponsored by the Human Rights Campaign, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, the Servicemembers United (formerly Call to Duty), Log Cabin Republicans, and Liberty Education Forum.

"Every year thousands of highly skilled gay, lesbian, bisexual servicemembers are discharged simply because of who they are," said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. 

One flag - 12,000 in all - will be placed on the Mall for every discharged service member.  

"These flags will stand as a testament to the waste to our military, our security, and our country caused by this discriminatory law," the sponsoring groups said in a joint statement.

In addition to recognizing the 12,000 servicemembers discharged under "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell," the event will also serve as a reminder of the hundreds of thousands unrecognized LGBT Americans who paid the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives throughout our country’s history to defend freedom the organizers said.

According to statistics from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network which advocates for gays in the military an average of two service members are dismissed under the law every day. 

A report prepared by the Government Accountability Office shows that nearly 800 people with skills deemed ‘mission-critical’ by the Pentagon have been dismissed under the law, including more than 322 language experts, at least 58 of whom specialized in Arabic.

The GAO said that DADT has cost American taxpayers more than $364 million since it was implemented.

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.

A Zogby poll taken in 2006 showed three-out-of-four members of the military who are serving in Iraq or recently returned home don't care if someone in their unit is gay.

A bill that would repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is currently before Congress and has 136 sponsors.

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