President Bill Clinton first introduced “don’t ask, don’t tell” in 1993. While campaigning, Clinton wanted all people who served in the military to do so proudly and openly, regardless of sexual orientation. The monster that came out of this is the policy we now know of as “don’t ask, don’t tell.” The policy essentially prohibits those in the armed forces from expressing their sexual orientation while in service of their country.

When President Obama began campaigning, he made it clear that he wanted to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell,” saying that the policy was unconstitutional. Now the policy is being considered for review for at least the next year to study the impact of the repeal before Congress will lift the policy for good.

As a gay man—one who doesn’t serve in the military—I have admittedly biased opinions about the policy. It has been deemed, apparently, that being a homosexual—even in this open-minded day and age—“would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.” I don’t agree with this at all. Essentially, it sounds like we’re saying that if you’re gay and a soldier, you’re incompetent. The only hindrance in being openly gay in the military is the bigotry and harassment that will follow you everywhere you go. This is unfortunate.

My boyfriend and I just recently got in an argument about this policy. He said he thinks that “don’t ask, don’t tell” is a good thing, because being gay doesn’t have anything to do with how well you do your job. And I wholeheartedly agree with him—to an extent. However, I also think it’s ludicrous to be disbarred from the military based on something as irrelevant as homosexuality. As a citizen of the United States, one should be able to live freely for who he or she is, without the government dictating whom you should or shouldn’t be in love with. Homosexuality doesn’t make you incompetent as a soldier. I’ve known many gay and lesbian soldiers who have served their country well, albeit with their mouths zipped about their orientation.

My hope is that the repeal goes through. With same-sex marriage finally catching on—and Iowa helping to pave the way for this—it’s about time the United States government learns the true meaning of “Land of the Free.” We need our soldiers more now than ever before. If your commanding officer can walk around showing pictures of his spouse and children, then it should be okay for a gay man or a lesbian serving in the military to do the same.

– Matthew H. Smith, Associate Editor