The New York Times had a report last week on the CIA having to turn away large numbers of Arabic-language linguists, despite their critically important skills, because of security threats, specifically the fact that some of the specialists have relatives in Middle Eastern countries. Of course, this would be less of a problem if the government weren’t also rejecting highly-trained linguists, anxious to serve their country, who happen to be gay.
[T]he Pentagon continues to dismiss trained linguists — people whose skills are desperately needed in Iraq and elsewhere around the world — for being gay. In fact, newly obtained data from the Department of Defense reveals that these firings were far more widespread than previously known. Between 1998 and 2004, the military discharged 20 Arabic and six Farsi language speakers under the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. The new data are not broken down by year, but additional figures from other reports suggest that about half the Arabic discharges came after September 11.
There is, however, good news on this. The AP reported yesterday that opposition to the ban on gay soldiers is growing — and those demanding change are gaining new allies.
[O]pponents of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy are now highlighting the ongoing struggles of Army and Marine recruiters. The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network says in a new report that many highly trained specialists — including combat engineers and linguists — are being discharged involuntarily while the Pentagon “is facing extreme challenges in recruiting and retaining troops.”
On other fronts:
* A federal court hearing is scheduled in Boston next month on a lawsuit by 12 former service members challenging the 12-year-old policy.
* In Congress, four Republicans — including stalwart conservatives Wayne Gilchrest of Maryland and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida — have joined 81 Democrats co-sponsoring a bill to repeal the policy. Gilchrest, a former supporter of the ban, said he changed his view partly out of respect for gay Marines he served with in Vietnam and for his brother, who is gay.
* A U.S. Military Academy professor, Lt. Col. Allen Bishop, wrote a column this spring in Army Times urging Congress to repeal the ban. “I thought I’d get lots of hate mail and my colleagues would walk on the other side of the hall — but there’s been none of that,” he said Tuesday.
It’s progress.