ROTC policy on gays debated
The Army's Don't Ask,
Don't Tell'policy affects
University ROTC cadets
By Erin Snelgrove
Oregon Daily Emerald
People often pretend to be
something they are not. They
will make up credentials on
their resumes, cheat on exams
and even lie about their sexual
exploits, if by doing so they
will benefit in some way. But
what if, in order to receive the
benefit, they had to deny their
identity?
At the University, the Army
ROTC often forces homosexuals
to think about these questions.
To be given leadership training,
experience in the armed forces
and monetary benefits, gay and
lesbian cadets cannot reveal
their sexual orientation. To di
vulge the truth about them
selves would break the Depart
ment of Defense Homosexual
Conduct Policy and would
mean expulsion from the pro
gram.
According to a memorandum
issued July 19,1993, by Secretary
of Defense Les Aspin, the mili
tary recognizes the contribution
gays and lesbians have made to
the armed forces, but at the same
time homosexual tendencies are
counterproductive to the perfor
mance of military personnel.
Therefore, the “Don’t Ask, Don’t
Tell” policy was adapted.
“The Department of Defense
has long held that, as a general
rule, homosexuality is incom
patible with military service be
cause it interferes with the fac
tors critical to combat
effectiveness, including unit
morale, unit cohesion and indi
viduals’ privacy,” Aspin said in
the memorandum. “Homosexu
al orientation is not a bar to ser
vice entry or continued service
unless manifested by homosex
ual conduct.”
Debate ensues
Heath Hutto, a member of the
University Standing Committee
on Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual
Concerns, is against the “Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. He real
izes the doctrine was created by
the government and not the
ROTC; however, he said the
mandate is still judgmental and
should not be condoned at this
campus.
“The goal of the University is
not to teach people how to hide
things, to pretend to be some
thing that they aren’t,” Hutto
said. “But the policy that says
you can be gay as long as you
don’t tell anyone does this.”
According to the Cadet Enroll
ment Record, a contract signed
by enrolled ROTC students, peo
ple who admit to their homosex
uality are not permitted into the
program. The military science
upper-division courses required
for the program are therefore pro
hibited to openly gay and lesbian
individuals because the form
must be signed before people can
enroll in upper-division ROTC
classes.
The ROTC will not ask about
a person’s sexual orientation,
but at the same time, people
who break the rule by "engag
ing in or attempting to engage
in homosexual acts” will be ex
pelled, according to the Cadet
Enrollment Record. If homosex
ual individuals receive finan
cial assistance from the ROTC,
they could be forced to repay
the money.
“If homosexual students re
ceived an ROTC scholarship and
then decided they couldn’t han
dle pretending to be straight any
more, they couldn’t just ‘come
out,”’ Hutto said. “By telling the
truth, they would have to repay
an inordinate sum.”
Capt. Richard Lewis, a cour
tesy assistant military science
professor at the University, said
the decision to make students re
pay ROTC scholarships is made
on a case-by-case basis. To the
best of his memory, he said he
does not remember a cadet ever
having to pay back a scholarship
while he or she has been in Eu
gene.
Law or excuse?
Lewis said he does not neces
sarily agree with the homosexual
conduct code, but he must abide
by it.
“What people have to under
stand is that this isn’t an ROTC
policy, it’s the law,” Lewis said.
“If anything were to change, it
would have to come from Con
gress.”
Laying responsibility on the
government for discriminating
against homosexuals is not an
acceptable excuse for many
people. By following this law,
the military, as a whole, is al
lowing prejudices to continue,
said Stephanie Carnahan, direc
tor of the lesbian, gay, bisexual
and transgender educational
and support service of Student
Life. Carnahan said she believes
that not every individual asso
ciated with the military is ho
mophobic, but the institution as
a whole supports homophobia
with this rule.
“The ROTC gives the response
that it is only following the rules,
but any institution that enforces
or believes in a homophobic poli
cy is homophobic,” Carnahan
said.
ROTC students agree that the
policy should not be a personal
reflection on them.
“If people knew us as individ
uals, they would know that we
aren’t homophobic or discrimi
natory,” said Molly Bryan, a ju
Measure reschedules elections
we move responds to a
changed OUS deadline
for incidental fees
By Sarah Skidmore
Oregon Daily Emerald
Editor’s Note: Students will be
voting on six measures during the
spring elections on April 21 and
22. Each day the Emerald will fea
ture a profile of each measure.
The fourth of six measures to
appear on the spring ballot will, if
approved, alter the ASUO Consti
tution to move back the mandato
ry dates of the spring election.
The measure was referred to the
ballot by the ASUO Executive.
I he measure proposes to alter
Rule 12.1 of the ASUO Constitu
tion, which provides for a win
dow to hold the elections be
tween April 1 and May 1. If the
measure passes, the elections
must be held between February
15 and April 1.
ASUO President Geneva Wort
man said the measure was sub
mitted because the Oregon Uni
versity System changed the
deadline for submission of Uni
versity incidental fees. The OUS
deadline is now April 1.
“This will allow us to get more
funding issues done,” Wortman
said.
nior cadet in the ROTC. “This
policy does not represent who
we are or what we believe.”
Bryan remembers feeling
somewhat surprised when she
first heard about the homosexual
conduct rule, but she did not
hold the ROTC responsible for it.
“When I read the conduct
policy, 1 remember thinking
how strange it was,” Bryan
said. “It was so detailed and ex
plicit about what a person
could and couldn’t do. But the
ROTC didn’t make the policy,
the government did. Unless the
government chooses to change
it, there is nothing the ROTC
can do.”
Change is needed
Hutto refuses to believe that
nothing can be done. Although
the ROTC may be forced to abide
by the policy, he said he sees no
reason why advanced military
science courses are closed to
openly gay and lesbian individu
als.
“I’d like an alternative to be
looked into where all military
science courses would be open
to everyone,” Hutto said. “If
that didn’t happen, I’d like for
the University to discontinue
letting the ROTC use its facili
ties.”
Carnahan said the University
recognizes the discrimination the
ROTC places on openly gay and
lesbian students. However, the
administration cannot help to
improve the situation.
“The policy is definitely dis
criminatory,” Carnahan said.
“We know this but we can’t do
anything about it. If we did, we’d
lose thousands and thousands of
dollars in federal funding.”
According to the ROTC Ac
cess to Campuses Act, which
was made effective March 29,
1997, any institution of higher
education that has an “anti
ROTC policy” will no longer re
ceive funding from the govern
ment.
Hutto is also familiar with the
ROTC Access to Campuses Act.
He said the mandate is ambigu
ous and rarely enforced.
“Short of prohibiting students
from joining the ROTC, I don’t
think schools will be in trouble
for violating the act,” Hutto said.
“You’d have to go pretty far to
meet the anti-ROTC policy.”
Carnahan sympathizes with
the concerns of gay and lesbian
students, but she maintains that
the fight to change the mili
tary’s homosexual mandate
must be taken up in a larger fo
rum. To be effective, people
should make an effort to con
tact their local legislatures to is
sue a complaint.
“With adequate public pres
sure, I think the military will do
the right thing and lift the ban,”
Carnahan said. “But, like all
things, this will take some time.”
Todays events
Friday, April 16
The Museum of Art will be
hosting a lecture by Masami
Teraokofrom5to7p.m. in
138 Gilbert.
The Oregon Ballroom Dance
Club is hosting a ballroom
dance from 7:30 to 11:30 p.m.
in 220 Gerlinger.
The Coalition to Boycott Gar
denburger/FLAV-R-PAC is host
ing a benefit show to support
Oregon Farmworkers. The party
starts at 9 p.m. on Saturday at
the Lorax at 1648 Alder St. There
is a sliding-scale $3-7 donation.
1311 Lincoln
Willamette Towers Building
345-1810
T
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