IV 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 665 
Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the ‘‘Don‘t Ask, Don’t 
Tell, Don’t Pursue’’ policy. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 20, 2021 
Mr. TAKANO (for himself, Mr. PAPPAS, and Mr. POCAN) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 
RESOLUTION 
Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the repeal of the 
‘‘Don‘t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue’’ policy. 
Whereas 10 years ago, on September 20, 2011, the repeal of 
the policy known as ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pur-
sue’’ took effect, officially allowing lesbian, gay, bisexual, 
transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) members of the Armed 
Forces to serve openly and without concealing their sex-
ual orientation; 
Whereas the ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ policy, which held that 
‘‘[t]he presence in the armed forces of persons who dem-
onstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual 
acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high stand-
ards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohe-
sion which are the essence of military capability’’, was 
codified in the fiscal year 1994 National Defense Author-
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ization Act, which was signed into law by President Bill 
Clinton on November 30, 1993; 
Whereas, under ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’, any member of the 
Armed Forces that stated they were homosexual or bisex-
ual, engaged or attempted to engage in ‘‘homosexual 
acts’’, or married or attempted to marry someone of the 
same sex could be discharged for violating policy; how-
ever, the law itself did not prevent servicemembers from 
being asked about their sexuality; 
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 con-
dition that they never identify themselves as nonhetero-
sexual, either through actions or words; 
Whereas, in the 18-year span that ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ 
served as official policy, over 13,000 servicemembers were 
discharged as a result of the policy; 
Whereas the experience of swearing to uphold an uncompro-
mising 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’’ and predecessor policies that 
forced the concealment of LGBTQ identity reveal height-
ened instances of panic attacks, phobias, substance 
abuse, and other mental health conditions, including a 
heightened risk of suicide, independent of already-existing 
combat and service-related mental health risks; 
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Whereas female members of the Armed Forces were particu-
larly impacted by ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’, and in 2007, 
women comprised only about 15 percent of military per-
sonnel but nearly 50 percent of the discharges under the 
policy, likely due to the heightened vulnerability of 
women in the military to sexual harassment and the sub-
sequent retaliation of harassers against women; 
Whereas many servicemembers who were discharged under 
‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ received discharge paperwork, 
known as ‘‘DD Form 214’’, with stigmatizing and identi-
fying codes indicating homosexuality as the reason for 
separation, recorded on the same paperwork that is used 
to screen veterans for employment, access Department of 
Veterans Affairs benefits and services, and determine eli-
gibility for reenlistment, meaning that veterans could still 
face discrimination and be denied access to these oppor-
tunities long after leaving the military; 
Whereas there are countless individual impacts that resulted 
from ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ which cannot be easily 
quantified or categorized, including the stresses of main-
taining secrecy with health care providers and law en-
forcement, isolation or alienation from peers, and per-
sistent fear of discovery, to name a few common experi-
ences; 
Whereas, by the nature of the policy, there was no mecha-
nism by which an active servicemember could openly pro-
test, give testimony, or otherwise publicly speak about 
their experience serving under ‘‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’’ 
without risking investigation and discharge; 
Whereas LGBTQ members of the Armed Forces nonetheless 
demonstrated great resiliency and courage, creating un-
derground networks to offer support to one another and 
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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’’ repeal was certified to 
comply with Department of Defense recommendations 
and standards on July 22, 2011, and took effect 60 days 
later on September 20, 2011: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, 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’’, as well as other policies of the 
Armed Forces that had an adverse and prejudicial 
impact on its members; 
(2) commemorates the repeal of ‘‘Don’t Ask, 
Don’t Tell’’ as a day in which members of the mili-
tary, regardless of their sexual orientation, were free 
to serve openly and to be honored for their service 
without caveat; and 
(3) reaffirms its commitment to honor the serv-
ice of all members of the military, both former and 
current, regardless of their gender identity or sexual 
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orientation, and continue working to foster inclusion 
and diversity in the Armed Forces. 
Æ 
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