Voices of Honor - Repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell

The Human Rights Campaign has a national campaign to repeal the anti-gay Don't Ask Don't Tell policy in the U.S. military. Voices of Honor is an effort to ensure that the 66,000 gay, lesbian, and bisexual service members no longer have to hide their identities and risk being taunted or kicked out of the military.

The policy has been in place since 1993 but President Barack Obama has pledged in his State of the Union address to work with congress to repeal the policy this year.

Urge congress to act swiftly to repeal DADT, an archaic and immoral piece of legislation.

Word of the Gay: "The 123 Words"

"The 123 Words" was the U.S. military policy formulated in 1982 barring gays and lesbians from serving prior to the Don't Ask Don't Tell Policy.

Word of the Gay: "Government Inspected Meat"

"Government Inspected Meat" is a term in the gay community to describe a gay man in the armed forces.

Organization Spotlight: Vets Do Ask Do Tell

Vets Do Ask Do Tell is an organization dedicated to the men and women in the LGBT community who served their country. The website features resources, studies, newsletters, events and more.

Stonewall Dems Fundraise for Congressman Patrick Murphy

The Stonewall Democrats, a national LGBT organization associated with the Democratic National Committee is fund-raising on behalf of our 'fierce advocate' when it comes to the Don't Ask Don't Tell repeal.

Congressman Patrick Murphy is the lead sponsor of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, and as a veteran of the military, he has been using his position to speak up for change.

Send a letter of thanks to the congressman, and pledge to support his re-election efforts.

Tell Speaker Pelosi to Make Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal a Priority

The Military Readiness Enhancement Act (HR 1283) which would allow gay, lesbian, and bisexual servicemembers to serve openly has the backing of the majority of citizens and Democrats in power. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has the power to make this issue of ending discrimination in our military a priority.

Join SLDN and the Courage Campaign in urging Speaker Pelosi to act to end DADT.

Word of the Gay: "Blue Discharge"

"Blue Discharge" is a term for the dishonorable discharge from the military due to violating their policy on homosexuality.

DADT Protest In Support of Lt. Dan Choi in Irvine, California

The Orange County chapter of Equality California (OCEC) is organizing a rally in support of Lt. Dan Choi who was ejected from the Army National Guard under the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy for coming out as a gay man on the Rachel Maddow show on March 20th.

You may remember that Mr. Choi and others created an organization called Knights Out to support LGBT alumni of West Point.

The protest will be held today...

May 7, 2009 from 2pm to 3pm
Bridge over Campus Dr. (Irvine, CA)
4255 Campus Drive
Irvine, CA 92612

People are encouraged to bring signs and friends to show support for Mr. Choi and repealing the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy.

Knights Out - Westpoint LGBT Alumni Group Unveils

A courageous group of alumni from the military academy West Point have come out of the closet and formed an organization called Knights Out to support and advocate on behalf of GLBT soldiers.

The group’s activities and goals will include:

• Financially supporting and providing speakers for AOG and West Point efforts to educate cadets and graduates in sexual diversity
• Providing a web-based forum (www.KnightsOut.org ) for furthering discourse on this topic among Army leaders
• Participating in West Point AOG’s upcoming (annual) Diversity Leadership Conference
• Providing LGBT graduates who have been disenfranchised in the past with a way to reconnect to the AOG
• Establishing a Knights Out affinity group through the Association of Graduates
• Serving as positive role models to cadets and graduates

To learn more and to find out how you support their efforts goto Knights Out.

Tell Congress: Repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”

A Message From PFLAG:

Please email your Member of Congress and urge them to support repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

Lawmakers are now considering The Military Readiness Enhancement Act - a bill that would end the prohibition on service by lesbian, gay and bisexual Americans - and they need to hear from their constituents about why this issue is so important.

By the end of today, two more service members will be dismissed from our armed forces under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

That's right: Two people are fired by our federal government, every day, simply because of who they are, and who they love. Since the law's inception, more than 12,000 men and women - including doctors, linguists, helicopter pilots and others - have been dismissed from the military.

Military families deserve to be treated equally under the law. LGBT Americans deserve an opportunity to serve our country. And our country deserves a fighting force that includes the best and brightest our country has to offer, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender troops, too.

Join PFLAG in calling on Congress to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." The time has come to end this discriminatory law and break down the barriers that prevent our loved ones from proudly defending the country we love.

Through this PFLAG Action Alert you can put another dent into this discriminatory law.

Proof Don't Ask Don't Tell Will Be Lifted Soon

Happy Saturday, this is proof Don't Ask Don't Tell will be lifted shortly.

Radio Host "Gunny" Inflames Anti-HIV & Homophobic Wound

Just a few days ago "Gunny" Bob Newman made the outrageous and unsubstantiated claim that allowing openly gay service members will increase HIV/AIDS in the military. GLAAD issued an action alert demanding that the radio station Mr. Newman works for KOA-AM and Clear Channel Communications reprimand him.

Colorado Media Matters points out that this time, Newman posted a "poll" on his KOA web page, asking listeners to choose between an “unmarried 25-year-old openly serving gay man” and a “25-year-old married heterosexual with two kids” as the source for a hypothetical battlefield blood transfusion.

The action alert is still alive and well. Please contact if you haven't done so, and please re-contact over the new appalling info if you have done so last time.

Contact:

KOA-AM

Mr. Lee Larsen
Vice President & General Manager
KOA-AM
Outlet Phone: (303) 713-8000
Email: leelarsen@clearchannel.com

Ms. Kristine Olinger
Director of AM Programming
KOA-AM
Outlet Phone: (303) 713-8000
Email: kristineolinger@clearchannel.com

Clear Channel Communications

Ms. Kathryn Johnson
Senior Vice President of Corporate Relations
Clear Channel Communications
Outlet Phone: (210) 822-2828
Email: kathrynmaysjohnson@clearchannel.com

Ms. Lisa Dollinger
Chief Communications Officer
Clear Channel Communications
Outlet Phone: (210) 822-2828
Email: lisacdollinger@clearchannel.com

If you choose to email Bob Newman himself he can be reached at bobnewman@850koa.com

Radio Host "Gunny" Bob Newman: "Gays In Military Increases HIV/AIDS"

On January 7 "Gunny" Bob Newman, host of The Gunny Bob Show on Colorado's KOA-AM Radio, used his Clear Channel-owned media platform to make false and defamatory comments about gay service members. Newman suggested that lifting "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the ban on allowing qualified gay military personnel to serve openly in the armed forces, would lead to greater HIV risk.

On the program Mr. Newman said:

"Interesting, though, how Barack Obama, who strictly avoided military service, has – says that the key test must be those things. He left a lot of stuff out. Like being able to fight with as much combat power as you possibly can. And if we have gays serving openly in the military, according to the military, that is going to reduce their combat power. You reduce combat power, casualties can go up.

We had a doctor call in the last hour, a military doctor, been in a long time, and he explained the dangers of HIV-AIDS on the battlefield. Especially when it comes to combat transfusions at the battalion aid station or where have you, in the back of a Hummer ambulance, wherever. And I added there's also the danger of contamination when it comes to all the first responders on scene.

Often times that's gonna be a medic or a corpsman. Or just another soldier – doesn't have to be a medic or a corpsman or a Marine or what have you – who faces the additional risk of HIV-AIDS contamination. And the doctor also went on to explain, you know, how these transfusions are sought and how quickly they must happen. And he pointed out that if we do this, and more and more gays join the military and they are HIV-positive or suffering from AIDS, and their blood ends up getting transfused, you know, into another military person, well, then that's a death sentence for the other person too. 303-713-8585.

This doesn't bother Barack Obama. It doesn't faze him in the least. He doesn't care if a soldier or a Marine or a SEAL or what have you gets HIV, becomes HIV-positive, and then develops AIDS and dies because he happened to get a transfusion from an, say, an openly gay person with a very active sexual, open lifestyle.

Because to Obama, what's most important is two things, being politically correct – excuse me, three things: being politically correct; functioning as a good leftist; and number three, paying back the gay and lesbian lobby, which donated such staggering sums of money to his campaign. He owes them a lot of money."

The audio version of it can be found below thanks to Colorado Media Matters...


GLAAD is asking us to contact Clear Channel-owned KOA-AM executives in Denver, Colorado and Clear Channel Communications national executives in San Antonio, Texas to demand that they reprimand "Gunny" Bob Newman for his inappropriate and offensive remarks. Call on them to stop allowing their platforms to be used to perpetuate false and defamatory stereotypes about the LGBT community.

Contact:

KOA-AM

Mr. Lee Larsen
Vice President & General Manager
KOA-AM
Outlet Phone: (303) 713-8000
Email: leelarsen@clearchannel.com

Ms. Kristine Olinger
Director of AM Programming
KOA-AM
Outlet Phone: (303) 713-8000
Email: kristineolinger@clearchannel.com

Clear Channel Communications

Ms. Kathryn Johnson
Senior Vice President of Corporate Relations
Clear Channel Communications
Outlet Phone: (210) 822-2828
Email: kathrynmaysjohnson@clearchannel.com

Ms. Lisa Dollinger
Chief Communications Officer
Clear Channel Communications
Outlet Phone: (210) 822-2828
Email: lisacdollinger@clearchannel.com

If you choose to email Bob Newman himself he can be reached at bobnewman@850koa.com