Since the 1940’s, homosexuals have been banned from the United States military. Existing officers found to be homosexuals were forced to resign. They were discriminated against and suffered at the hands of others. In 1993 President William J. Clinton introduced the Don’t ask, don’t tell policy as his answer to the problem. He believed it to be a huge step for gay rights. However, the policy had many unintended consequences. It is debated to this date and its importance is underlined by the fact the candidates for presidency in the 2008 general elections have both had to make their stance on this subject clear. Three negative effects of Don’t ask, Don’t tell are increased misuse of the policy by military members, increased distress among homosexual members of the armed forces and increased friction between the military heads and the government.
One negative effect of the Don’t ask, don’t tell policy was increased misuse of the policy by military members. The policy became a gateway of escape for those wanting to get out of military training. In accordance with military code, any individual who is discharged due their sexual orientation is to be given an honorable discharge. This allowed numerous military members to misuse the policy to escape military service and gain an honorable discharge. They began to fake homosexuality in order to excuse themselves from the rigors of military life. After the introduction of the policy, the number of discharges due to homosexuality increased dramatically and this was a blow to the military. These were officers that they had spent considerable amount of money and time on to train them and it would all be money wasted. Many of these discharges even took place at the Basic Military Training level. It also led to a decrease in the number of officers.
A more negative effect of the Don’t ask, don’t tell policy was increased distress among homosexual members of the military. The policy was introduced in the hope...