Do ask, I'll tell

It’s nearly the end of the year, and everyone is hoping to finish what can be finished before the New Year comes along and catches them by surprise.  And to the gay community, especially, fingers are crossed, hoping for the US Senate to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy of the US military.

Time was, the institution of that policy was received as great news.  Yup, I might be showing my age, but I distinctly recall San Franciscans celebrating when the news came out that then-newly elected President Bill Clinton wasn’t in the mood to fire gay men and women serving in their military.  When Clinton came to power, he set matters straight (forgive me for the pun), by approving the policy that so long as military service people were discreet about their orientation, they could keep their jobs.

You have to realize, this was at a time when spies were suspected to be following about service men suspected to be gay.  Reports came out in the gay press that military men gallivanting about in gay bars from Greenwich Village to Castro Street would find themselves suddenly charged with homosexuality (never mind that they were never actually seen performing the deed) and then being dismissed from service.  That, or straight servicemen were tattling on who they saw out and proud in the streets.

So from an atmosphere of suspicion and paranoia, the gay community saw reason to cheer when the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell” policy was instituted.The message was clear and reassuring: ‘Do what you have to do in your own bedroom, just don’t involve the military in it.’  Which, for me, was a reasonable accommodation, and a major load off the minds of gays and lesbians living in fear. 

But I guess I’m too complaisant and passive, because the activists in the gay community apparently didn’t think so.  (Who would have thought, me actually capable of accepting the status quo!)  Through the years, the Americans have been pushing for a repeal, steadfast in their principle that they do not have to hide anything, not their orientation, not their partners, not their true selves. 

And here they are, at the end of the year 2010, waiting for the US Senate to put the bill to a vote.  Unofficially, they have the magic number 60, with surprise, surprise, four of them being Republicans.These Republican Senators (three of them women) have openly voiced their support for the bill, joining Democrats and independents.All that is left to be done is actually sit down and cast their votes, making their voiced positions official.

The majority leader in the Senate, Harry Reid, has announced he wants to put the bill to a vote this Saturday.  So hopefully, when this column comes out, we’ll wake up to the amazing announcement from the other side of the globe that it’s been approved.  Another smashing footnote to append to the year 2010, right?

But not all is assured, the minority in the Senate is reported to be dragging their feet, trying to defeat passage of the bill.  Plus, there are apparently other bills the US Senate has to tackle and approve.  With the end of the year in sight, and a new Congress due to be sworn in on January 5, it’s definitely a nail-biting finish.  (And we know what a new Congress means – the activists will have to start polling the new Senators’ positions on the issue, and trying to get that magic 60 again.  Which seems dim, as the Republicans will then be holding the majority of the Senate.) 

Now is therefore the time for the vote, and we can only hope that the US gay community and their wonderful supporters in the Senate are able to achieve this goal.  Then, we here can again take that fantastic position of sneering at the Philippines for being so backward and so third-world compared to advanced America, and shame our legislators into comparable action. (Oops, I wonder whether I’m supposed to express that openly.  I’m kidding!) 

Seriously though, progress in other countries can fuel commensurate progress in this one.  There is more strength that can be lent to the arguments for advancing measures meant to protect gay rights, and achieve parity in opportunities.  Let’s hope 2010 ends with the bang we need.