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Minorities Make Up Half of DADT Firings


MILITARY SOLDIERS ARMY X390 (GETTY) | ADVOCATE.COM

Nonwhite military personnel are more likely than their white counterparts to be discharged under the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" law, according to information obtained by Servicemembers United.

While racial minorities account for approximately 29% of active service members, according to the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute, about 45% of the 640 men and women discharged under "don't ask, don't tell" in fiscal year 2008 were nonwhite.

Alexander Nicholson, a former U.S. Army interrogator and the executive director of Servicemembers United, said the disproportionate number of women and racial minorities being discharged under the 16-year-old law was well known before the study. "These new numbers, however, show that the problem is getting worse and that this policy has ultimately failed," Nicholson said in a statement on Thursday. "Lawmakers have a responsibility to address this problem immediately, and the president should hasten the appointment of a new undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness who is qualified and willing to deal with this issue."

Women, who make up 15% of all armed forces, accounted for one third of "don't ask, don't tell" discharges.

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Reader Comments
  • Name: Margaret Jackson
    Date posted: 9/16/2009 3:35:33 PM
    Hometown: Shelburne, VT

    Comment:

    Having been discharged from the Navy for "lifestyle" nearly 40 years before DADT, it took me several years before I realized I could leave that off my job applications since in the '50s women weren't assumed to have been in the service. That was not so for men in the same circumstances and could really mess up work prospects for work, in addition to the psychological damage of the official rejection. There is a lot of unnecessary damage going around lo these many years.

  • Name: lisa77
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 9:37:25 AM
    Hometown: new orleans

    Comment:

    The whole DADT is just plain crazy. Being gay does not affect your job performance. A straight worker is not any more qualified than a gay worker. A secure person would not care if they are working with a gay person. Is it because they are afraid a gay person might make advances towards their coworkers? I thought you were there to serve and risk your life for your country. Those who are afraid of that possibility should know that gay person most likely is just not that into you.

  • Name: Jason
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 4:17:52 AM
    Hometown: London

    Comment:

    Scott honey, it in proportion to the overall make up of the armed forces. "racial minorities account for approximately 29% of active service members" Yet they make up 45% of those discharged under DADT. So proportionately racial minorities are being worse affected than their white colleagues, since they count for a smaller percentage of overall army personnel, yet almost half of those being discharged. Clear?

  • Name: Scott E.
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 1:35:07 AM
    Hometown: Seymour, WI

    Comment:

    I'm confused. Does this mean that 55% of the servicemembers are white? If so, then the white males seem to be the ones being discharged the most since there are so many more subgroups to nonwhites (i.e. Hispanic, Asian, Black, and etc).

  • Name: Scott E.
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 1:34:44 AM
    Hometown: Seymour, WI

    Comment:

    I'm confused. Does this mean that 55% of the servicemembers are white? If so, then the white males seem to be the ones being discharged the most since there are so many more subgroups to nonwhites (i.e. Hispanic, Asian, Black, and etc).

  • Name: Scott E.
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 1:34:35 AM
    Hometown: Seymour, WI

    Comment:

    I'm confused. Does this mean that 55% of the servicemembers are white? If so, then the white males seem to be the ones being discharged the most since there are so many more subgroups to nonwhites (i.e. Hispanic, Asian, Black, and etc).

  • Name: Scott E.
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 1:34:16 AM
    Hometown: Seymour, WI

    Comment:

    I'm confused. Does this mean that 55% of the servicemembers are white? If so, then the white males seem to be the ones being discharged the most since there are so many more subgroups to nonwhites (i.e. Hispanic, Asian, Black, and etc).

  • Name: Scott E.
    Date posted: 9/11/2009 1:34:03 AM
    Hometown: Seymour, WI

    Comment:

    I'm confused. Does this mean that 55% of the servicemembers are white? If so, then the white males seem to be the ones being discharged the most since there are so many more subgroups to nonwhites (i.e. Hispanic, Asian, Black, and etc).

  • Name: cbjames
    Date posted: 9/10/2009 9:11:46 PM
    Hometown: Vallejo, CA

    Comment:

    What do you know. They're racist, too.



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