“Don’t ask, don’t tell.” What does that mean? The 1993 “Don’t ask, don’t tell” law banned gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military. Of course, gays could still join the military, but only if they hid their sexual orientation. The law was introduced by President Bill Clinton as a compromise to allow homosexuality in the military, as long as no one asked about their sexual preference and they did not tell anyone. Naturally, there has been on ongoing debate about this policy.
In the past few years, many public opinion surveys have been taken regarding this. A national poll conducted by the Boston Globe in 2005 showed that 79% of those surveyed were not opposed to openly gay people joining the military. A more recent study, done in February 2010 by Quinnipiac University, showed that 66% of people agreed that this act is complete discrimination.
When Obama first stepped into office, he said that he would do something about this policy. As of a few weeks ago, nothing had happened. Gay Rights organizations and many American citizens wondered why nothing had been done. Finally, on May 27th, the House of Representatives voted on an act to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. The House unanimously agreed that the policy should be repealed, but not yet. They believe it is important to see how the public will react, and what the affect on America and the military will be like. Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, says that before they do anything, he would like to ease concerns of troops and carefully review the possible effects. Gates does not expect a repeal to occur until the end of the year. According to Fox News, Admiral Mike Mullen believes that the policy should change, but agrees with Gates in that they should wait. “What I don't want to do is electrify the force at the time of two wars. We get through the review, we'll understand what it takes to implement it, and having time, and in fact I, with the Secretary of Defense and the President, would certify it that we're ready for implementation at the time when that should really take place.”
After all, no one really knows how America will react. Although many studies have been conducted, no one knows if America will support or refute the bringing up of a new policy. Those interviewed in previous studies unanimously agree that by repealing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, more protests for gay rights (such as the gay marriage) will occur, along with a more accepting American attitude.