military members

A member of the New Hampshire National Guard will be allowed to attend an upcoming Yellow Ribbon event with her same-sex partner, Defense Department officials said Wednesday. Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan, who returned recently from a deployment in Kuwait and made headlines when she came out in the national media following repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell,” said earlier this week that she was not authorized to bring her partner of 11 years to a required-attendance Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program event.

OutServe, a fast growing professional and social support organization for military members will soon launch a worldwide publication that could be available at military sites around the world, an advocacy group announced Monday. The magazine will cover information about the ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” repeal implementation, OutServe chapters, and will  touch on topics of interest to the currently-serving LGBT military members, according to CNN.

Senator John McCain says the military does not actively out gay members on The Rachel Maddow Show; Major Mike Almy counters.

A new study shows that the Department of Defense could easily train all members of the military in new protocol recognizing the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell."

Hip-hop act God-Des and She have released a special new video, “Goodbye DADT,” that pays tribute to lesbian members of the military with real footage.

Col. Grethe Cammermeyer, the highest-ranking military member ever to be discharged under the ban on gay and lesbian service members, spoke about the latest developments surrounding the "don't ask, don't tell" policy with the talk show Lundon Calling.

The New, Now, Next Awards aired last night on Logo, and during one particularly moving segment, host Aisha Tyler (The Talk) couldn’t help but choke up as she introduced a same-sex military couple that married on the stroke of midnight when DADT was repealed. She thanked pioneering LGBT military members who’re blazing trails with for others with their fearlessness.

A majority of the military service members surveyed by the Pentagon have indicated they would not leave the military if “don’t ask, don’t tell” was lifted and have few to no concerns about gays and lesbians serving openly, according to NBC and the Associated Press. NBC’s Richard Engel told Rachel Maddow that ending the ban was “not a deal breaker” and “wasn’t that big of deal.”

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is being urged to start expanding all benefits and recognition to the families, partners, and spouses of gay members of the military. Aubrey Sarvis of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network wrote an open letter to Panetta, calling for immediate action to expand such benefits, as the one-year anniversary approaches of the Defense Department issuing its guidelines on "don't ask, don't tell" repeal.

One minute past the stroke of midnight on Sept. 20 the long-awaited repeal of President Bill Clinton’s 1993 "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" (DADT) policy went into effect. At precisely 12:01 a.m. EST, the popping of champagne bottles began along with cheers and tears celebrating the end of a repressive era that prohibited LGBTQ service members from honestly and openly serving in the military.

11 Firsts: Major Milestones After The Repeal of 'Don't Ask Don't Tell'

With the global-wide kerfuffle about an Islamophobic minister, Rev. Terry Jones of Gainesville, Florida, threatening to burn the Koran on the ninth anniversary of 9/11, little attention last week was given to a federal district court judge’s ruling that the military’s "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" (DADT) ban on gays and lesbians serving openly is unconstitutional.

Maj. Gen. John Nichols directed state-run facilities to refuse to process same-sex benefits, citing to conflicts with Texas's constitution.

Karen Morgan, who was married to the late chief warrant officer and outspoken lesbian military activist Charlie Morgan, received a military ID card for the first time on Wednesday.

The leaders of the Fort Bragg Officers' Spouses Club have announced that they will review their rules, which prohibit same-sex spouses of officers, at their next board meeting next month.

Last week Lady Gaga joined Maine’s rally to send a message to the state’s two moderate Republican senators, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, asking them to repeal "don’t ask, don’t tell" (DADT), a critical vote in Congress. But, to no one’s surprise, Senate Republicans quashed it. Democrats needed only 60 votes to overcome a filibuster; the vote, however, was 56 to 43. The action President Obama should take is to issue an executive order on behalf of LGBTQ service members.

Less than a year after the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell," former Army Colonel Tammy Smith was promoted to brigadier general Friday making her the first general officer to come out while serving.