Calvin Waller Calvin Augustine Hoffman Waller ( December 17 , 1937 – May 9 , 1996 ) was a United States Army officer . Early life and career . Waller was born to an African American family in Baton Rouge , Louisiana , on December 17 , 1937 . He graduated from Prairie View A & M University in 1959 with a bachelor ' s degree and from Shippensburg College of Pennsylvania with a master ' s degree in public administration in 1978 . Waller spent 32 years in the United States Army and served in the Vietnam War . Waller held a variety of staff and command positions which included : Chief of Staff , 24th Infantry Division ( Mechanized ) , Fort Stewart , Georgia ; Commanding General , 8th Infantry Division ( Mechanized ) , V Corps , U . S . Army Europe and Seventh Army . Persian Gulf War . Waller was the deputy commander - in - chief for military operation s with United States Central Command ( Forward ) , during the Persian Gulf War . Fort Lewis and retirement . Waller ' s last duty assignment was as Commanding General , I Corps at Fort Lewis , Washington , before he retired from the military at the rank of Lieutenant General , on November 30 , 1991 . Position on " Don ' t Ask Don ' t Tell " . Waller was vehemently opposed to allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the United States Armed Forces . During the 1993 U . S . Senate hearings on allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the United States military , Waller vigorously opposed it . He declared that " to compare [ his ] service in American ' s armed forces with the integration of avowed homosexuals is personally offensive . " Later life . After retiring from the military , Waller moved to Denver , Colorado and served as the president and chief executive officer of an environmental technology company , RKK Limited . He then became the senior vice president for the Department of Energy Programs for the ICF Kaiser Environmental and Energy Group . In July 1995 , Waller became the Kaiser - Hill vice president for site operations and integration at Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site . Death . Waller died in Washington , D . C . on May 9 , 1996 , at the age of 58 , due to complications from a heart attack . Upon learning of his death , U . S . President Bill Clinton said , " His rise from humble beginnings to one of the highest - ranking African American officers in the U . S . military through stalwart determination and a record of excellence served as an inspiration to minority and non - minority officers . " President Clinton also cited Waller ' s reputation as a " skillful and disciplined professional and a caring , enthusiastic commander . " Awards and decorations . Among his awards and decorations are the Defense Distinguished Service Medal , the Army Distinguished Service Medal ( two awards ) , the Defense Superior Service Medal , Bronze Star Medal ( with Oak Leaf Cluster ) , the Meritorious Service Medal ( with three Oak Leaf Clusters ) , the Air Medal , the Army Commendation Medal , Combat Infantryman Badge , and the Master Parachutist Badge . Waller ' s civic awards include the Martin Luther King Jr . " Buffalo Soldier " Award from the Congress of Racial Equality , the Roy Wilkins Renown Service Award from the NAACP , the French Legion of Honor award from the Government of France and the " Star of Texas " award from the state of Texas .