By James Esseks, Director, ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender & AIDS Project at 9:47am
At long last (and after two years of ACLU litigation), many lesbian and gay former members of the military will be getting what they deserve: full severance pay regardless of their sexual orientation.
If you serve six years in the military and are then discharged involuntarily, Congress says you're entitled to separation pay to help ease your transition to civilian life. But the military had a policy – not required by any law – of cutting that separation pay in half if you're discharged, even honorably, for "homosexuality."
By Dena Sher, ACLU Washington Legislative Office & Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 1:58pm
With Congress having recently approved this year’s NDAA, we think it is important to draw attention to a provision (Section 533(a)(1)), which, though hidden away, is unprecedented, sweeping, and could invite dangerous claims of a right to discriminate against not just lesbian, gay, and bisexual service members, but also women, religious minorities, and in the provision of health care.
By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 11:09am
This Thursday, September 20, marks one year since the discriminatory policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) finally came to an end, opening the door to service in the Armed Forces to individuals regardless of their sexual orientation.
By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 2:41pm
Just in time for Independence Day, Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.), the senior Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, has introduced the Military Spouses Equal Treatment Act (H.R. 6046). This important legislation would ensure equality in military and veteran benefits for all military spouses. It has already garnered the support of 11 additional Democratic members of the Armed Services Committee, as well as Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 4:10pm
What an amazing and historic week it has been for the cause of gay rights. On Wednesday, for the first time in our country’s history, a sitting President of the United States said that he supports the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples. President Obama’s remarks carry incredible symbolic importance, and his explanation of the evolution in his own thinking that brought him to this point will be something to which millions of Americans can relate. It is representative of a journey that many men and women – both young and old – have taken in coming to the conclusion that what marriage is really about is love and commitment, and that is something that is true for both gay and straight couples.
This Veterans' Day, we thank our service men and women for their dedication, and we celebrate the strides our country has made towards greater equality in the armed forces.
Thanks to a court ruling this week, the government will have to explain how cutting gay service members' separation pay in half served important governmental interests.
By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 5:23pm
On Friday, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) published a final rule in the Federal Register to provide eligible federal employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave for "qualifying exigency purposes." Just what are qualifying exigencies, you ask yourself? Well, under the rule, qualifying exigencies arise when the spouse, son, daughter or parent of an employee is on active duty in the Armed Forces, or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty status.
By Ian S. Thompson, ACLU Washington Legislative Office at 5:23pm
On Friday, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) published a final rule in the Federal Register to provide eligible federal employees up to 12 workweeks of unpaid leave for "qualifying exigency purposes." Just what are qualifying exigencies, you ask yourself? Well, under the rule, qualifying exigencies arise when the spouse, son, daughter or parent of an employee is on active duty in the Armed Forces, or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty status.
