If you thought this past weekend was historic, when the U.S. Senate voted 65-31 to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," today takes it to another level. At a giant signing ceremony at the Department of Interior, filled with some of the 14,000 troops kicked out of the U.S. military for being gay, President Obama officially signed into law a repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Full repeal won't take effect until Obama and the Pentagon clear the way, which could take several more weeks. But today's signing ceremony paves the way for the U.S. to join the ranks of two dozen allies who all allow openly gay, lesbian and bisexual soldiers to serve in the military.
"I want to express my gratitude to the men and women in this room who have worn the uniform of the U.S. Armed Services. I want to thank all the patriots who are here today. All of them who were forced to hang up their uniform because of DADT, but who never stopped fighting for this country, and who rallied and marched for change," President Obama said today. "Because of these efforts, in the coming days we will begin the process laid out by this law."
Powerful sentiments that speak to one of the proudest moments for equality that our country has seen in decades.
Of course, today's signing ceremony was preceded by a little bit of drama from some anti-gay folks in the U.S. Senate, including Sen. Mitch McConnell who tried to push through an amendment that would have slowed down repeal of "Don't ask, Don't Tell," until all four military chiefs could sign off on it.
Thankfully, that bitter attempt to stall progress was turned down in the U.S. Senate. But it speaks loudly to the type of culture that leaders like Sen. McConnell want to set in Washington. Obstruction. Discrimination. More of the same.
But today's not a day to focus on Sen. McConnell, or John McCain, Lindsay Graham or any of the others who stood in the way of tearing down this wall of bigotry. Today belongs to the gay men and women serving in silence right now, and all those who came before who could not serve their nation honestly or completely because of their sexual orientation.
"At every turn, every crossroads in our past, we know that gay Americans fought just as hard, gave just as much, to protect this nation and the ideals for which it stands. There were gay soldiers who fought for Independence, who consecrated the ground at Gettysburg, who manned the trenches of the Western Front, who stormed the beaches of Iwo Jima," President Obama said. And then he delivered a message to those gay soldiers who will be the first generation ever to serve openly in the U.S. military.
"As the first generation to serve openly, you will stand for all those who came before you. You will serve as role models to all those who come after you. And I know you will fulfill this responsibility with integrity with honor, just as you have with every other mission you’ve been charged," Obama added.
It's also worth adding a line from Vice President Joe Biden, who introduced President Obama at today's signing ceremony. Biden's words capture exactly why it was so important to send "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" packing.
"By signing this bill, you will be linking military might with an abiding sense of justice. Projecting power by promoting a giant sense of fairness," concluded Biden.
And he's right. Thank you to all who kept this fight up for the past 17 years, and those who fought decades before that to bring to light the injustice of barring openly gay men and women from serving in the U.S. military. Today marks a victory not just for gay rights activists, but for the entire country.
http://gayrights.change.org/blog/view/president_obama_signs_historic_repeal_of_dont_ask_dont_tell
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