Statement by Wade Henderson on Congressional Votes to End ‘Don???t Ask, Don???t Tell’

Today, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights released the following statement regarding yesterday’s approval by the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate Armed Services Committee of legislation that would set the stage for repeal of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

“The Leadership Conference applauds Congress for taking an important step toward ending the failed and unjust ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ (DADT) policy.  Since 1993, DADT has robbed our military of thousands of talented individuals and committed a disservice to the courageous men and women who volunteer to defend our country. It is only fitting, as we pause this Memorial Day holiday to honor our veterans and service members, that Congress moves expeditiously to rectify this injustice.

The civil and human rights community is committed to the principle that people who are willing and able to do a job should be given a fair opportunity to do it. DADT subverts that principle and ignores decades of evidence that clearly show that gays and lesbians can serve openly and honorably in the military.

The language included in the National Defense Authorization Act by the full House and the Senate Armed Services Committee is a common sense step that gives the president and our military leaders the ability to end DADT following the completion of the Defense Department’s implementation study. We urge the full Senate to approve the legislation and look forward to the complete repeal of DADT.”