A new poll shows
that for the first time a majority of Americans support
allowing gays to serve openly in the U.S. military. The
Harris Interactive survey reveals that 55% of those
polled say openly gay people should be allowed to
serve in the military, and 57% agreed with former
Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman John Shalikashvili's
assertion last month that openly gay people will "not
undermine the efficacy of the armed forces," The Wall Street Journal reports.
Only 19% of those polled said that gays could
serve if they kept their sexual orientation secret,
and 18% said they shouldn't be allowed to serve at
all. In 2000, 48% said that gays should be allowed to serve openly.
On the specific question of "don't ask, don't
tell," the military's official ban on openly gay
service members, 46% of respondents said they oppose
the policy, the same as in 2000.
The survey of 2,337 Americans was conducted
January 11-18. (The Advocate)
