We hear from gay service members about their experiences in the military. We also hear from the author of the policy and other experts on the issue.
This piece aired in 2004 on Day to Day
Note there are some drop-outs in the audio on this website, but they don't exist in the non-web version.
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Piece Description
We hear from gay service members about their experiences in the military. We also hear from the author of the policy and other experts on the issue. This piece aired in 2004 on Day to Day Note there are some drop-outs in the audio on this website, but they don't exist in the non-web version.
3 Comments
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Review of Gays in the Military - 10 Years of Don't Ask Don't TellAs a recently retired (gay) member of the U.S. Navy, I can relate personally to this issue. I found this piece to be very thought provoking, and very timely. I think that changing societal views will eventually change the prevailing views in the military services. I have noticed that over the last 10 years I was in the Navy that those views had started to change - to one more accepting... Really, one of acceptance as long as the person did not make a big deal out of his or her being gay; but was a professional on the job. Not perfect, I know, but much better than in the previous years I was in...where the environment was downright hostile. :) |
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Review of Gays in the Military - 10 Years of Don't Ask Don't TellTells the story of gays in the military under DADT, however piece is light and snippets of quotes are too short and there is no rebuttal |
Broadcast History
Day to Day, 2004
Transcript
After high school, Brad Powell enlisted in the National Guard. He says he wanted to serve his country and get help with his college tuition. Powell is gay. He knew about the Don?t Ask Don?t Tell policy, but he didn?t realize he would have to make up stories to keep his gay identity a secret.
Just to appear normal, basically I had a girlfriend with whom I was getting married to , who I had sex with all the time, //
Everyone else would have pictures of girls in bathing suits, or?in very provocative pictures in their locker, and you know occasionally someone would be like, where are your pictures? And I would be like, I don?t have any or I forgot to bring them, you know, um,but I would keep pictures of my boyfriend David I would keep them hidden away in my locker//
Powell says anti-gay comments were part of daily life in his unit and they made him very uncomfortable.
For exa...
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Scott Gurian
Posted on July 17, 2004 at 11:50 AM | Permalink
Review of Gays in the Military - 10 Years of Don't Ask Don't Tell
Piece provides a good summary of an issue I think most people don't know much about. The stories of harassment the gay soldier tells are very disturbing, and I think they're important for people to hear. I think I might have appreciated a piece that was a little longer and more in-depth, however.