Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" policy.

Don t Ask, Don Whereas 10 years ago, on September 20, 2011, the repeal of the policy known as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue Whereas the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell [t]he presence in the armed forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion which are the essence of military capability Whereas, under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell homosexual acts Whereas, while the intention of the policy was to eliminate the outright ban on LGBTQ members in the military that existed prior to 1993, it created an environment which permitted LGBTQ individuals to serve on the condition that they never identify themselves as nonheterosexual, either through actions or words; Whereas, in the 18-year span that Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Whereas the experience of swearing to uphold an uncompromising oath of integrity while actively hiding their sexual orientation had significant psychological impacts on LGBTQ servicemembers, as well as both long- and short-term mental and physical impacts; Whereas surveys of LGBTQ veterans that served under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Whereas female members of the Armed Forces were particularly impacted by Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Whereas many servicemembers who were discharged under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell DD Form 214 Whereas there are countless individual impacts that resulted from Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Whereas, by the nature of the policy, there was no mechanism by which an active servicemember could openly protest, give testimony, or otherwise publicly speak about their experience serving under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Whereas LGBTQ members of the Armed Forces nonetheless demonstrated great resiliency and courage, creating underground networks to offer support to one another and covertly supplying anonymous information on LGBTQ experiences in the military to Pentagon researchers for the 2010 Department of Defense report that outlined the path to repeal; Whereas, after nearly two decades of activism and advocacy, the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Act of 2010 was signed on December 22, 2010, by President Barack Obama; and Whereas the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell That the House of Representatives— (1) recognizes the deep and lasting harm caused by the policy known as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue (2) commemorates the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (3) reaffirms its commitment to honor the service of all members of the military, both former and current, regardless of their gender identity or sexual orientation, and continue working to foster inclusion and diversity in the Armed Forces.

Summary: This resolution recognizes the harm caused to members of the Armed Forces by the Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue policy and commemorates the repeal of the policy as a day in which service members were free to serve openly and be honored for such service without caveat. The resolution also reaffirms the commitment to honor the service of all members and former members of the military, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation.