"Don't ask,don't tell" (DADT) was the official United States policy on military service of non-heterosexual people. Instituted during the Clinton administration,the policy was issued under Department of Defense Directive 1304.26 on December 21,1993,and was in effect from February 28,1994,until September 20,2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants,while barring openly gay,lesbian,or bisexual persons from military service. This relaxation of legal restrictions on service by gays and lesbians in the armed forces was mandated by Public Law 103–160,which was signed November 30,1993. The policy prohibited people who "demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the armed forces of the United States,because their presence "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".
The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense,the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces,and is a high-ranking member of the federal cabinet. The secretary of defense's position of command and authority over the military is second only to that of the president of the United States,who is the commander-in-chief. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a defense minister in many other countries. The secretary of defense is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate,and is by custom a member of the Cabinet and by law a member of the National Security Council.
The secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer and the head of the Department of the Navy,a military department within the United States Department of Defense.
Eric Ken Shinseki is a retired United States Army general who served as the seventh United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2009–2014) and the 34th Chief of Staff of the Army (1999–2003). Shinseki is a veteran of two tours of combat in the Vietnam War,in which he was awarded three Bronze Star Medals for valor and two Purple Hearts. He was the first Asian-American four-star general,and the first Asian-American Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Charles Timothy Hagel is an American military veteran and former politician who served as the 24th United States secretary of defense from 2013 to 2015 in the administration of Barack Obama. He previously served as chairman of the president's Intelligence Advisory Board from 2009 to 2013 and as a United States senator representing Nebraska from 1997 to 2009.
Robert Michael Gates is an American intelligence analyst and university president who served as the 22nd United States secretary of defense from 2006 to 2011. He was appointed by President George W. Bush and was retained by President Barack Obama. Gates began his career serving as an officer in the United States Air Force but was quickly recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Gates served for twenty-six years in the CIA and at the National Security Council,and was director of central intelligence under President George H. W. Bush from 1991 to 1993. After leaving the CIA,Gates became president of Texas A&M University and was a member of several corporate boards. Gates served as a member of the Iraq Study Group,the bipartisan commission co-chaired by James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton that studied the lessons of the Iraq War.
John Michael McHugh is an American politician from the U.S. state of New York who served as the 21st United States Secretary of the Army,and represented the state's 23rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives.
Michael Glenn Mullen is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as the 17th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 2007 to September 2011.
Barack Obama,President of the United States from 2009 to 2017,served as a U.S. senator from Illinois from 2005 to 2008 and as an Illinois state senator from 1997 to 2004. A member of the Democratic Party,he made his presidential run in 2008. He was elected President in 2008 and re-elected in 2012.
Michael Bruce Donley is a United States government official who is the director of administration and management in the Office of the Secretary of Defense since May 2021,having served in the same position from 2005 to 2008. In the Bush and Obama administrations,Donley served as the 22nd secretary of the Air Force,amongst other positions. Donley has 30 years of experience in the national security community,including service on the staff of the United States Senate,White House and The Pentagon.
The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (SAF/AQ) is a civilian position in the Department of the Air Force that is appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate. This position is established under Title 10 US Code Section 9016 and is one of five Assistant Secretary positions under the Secretary of the Air Force. The Assistant Secretary reports to the Secretary of the Air Force.
Morrell John Berry is an American former government official who was named President of the American Australian Association in 2016. Berry was director of the United States Office of Personnel Management from 2009 to 2013 and United States Ambassador to Australia from 2013 to 2016.
William James Lynn III is a former United States Deputy Secretary of Defense. Before that he was Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) and a lobbyist for Raytheon.
United States Cyber Command (USCYBERCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). It unifies the direction of cyberspace operations,strengthens DoD cyberspace capabilities,and integrates and bolsters DoD's cyber expertise which focus on securing cyberspace.
Jamie Michael Morin is a former senior official in the United States Department of Defense. He was a private sector economist and research consultant before earning a Doctorate degree in political science from Yale University. He then served as a professional staff member on the United States Senate Committee on the Budget. Morin was Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation at the Department of Defense. Previously,he was Assistant Secretary of the Air Force,and served concurrently as Acting Under Secretary of the Air Force from 3 July 2012 to 28 April 2013. He joined The Aerospace Corporation in 2017 as executive director of the Center for Space Policy and Strategy and vice president of Defense Systems Operations.
Frank Kendall III is an American engineer,lawyer and executive who is the 26th and current United States Secretary of the Air Force. He has served in several senior positions in the U.S. Department of Defense. A West Point graduate,he retired as a lieutenant colonel from the U.S. Army Reserve. From 2011 to 2017,Kendall served as the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition,Technology and Logistics in the Obama Administration. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
The United States military formerly excluded gay men,bisexuals,and lesbians from service. In 1993,the United States Congress passed,and President Bill Clinton signed,a law instituting the policy commonly referred to as "Don't ask,don't tell" (DADT),which allowed gay,lesbian,and bisexual people to serve as long as they did not reveal their sexual orientation. Although there were isolated instances in which service personnel were met with limited success through lawsuits,efforts to end the ban on openly gay,lesbian,and bisexual people serving either legislatively or through the courts initially proved unsuccessful.
The Don't Ask,Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 is a landmark United States federal statute enacted in December 2010 that established a process for ending the "don't ask,don't tell" (DADT) policy,thus allowing gay,lesbian,and bisexual people to serve openly in the United States Armed Forces. It ended the policy in place since 1993 that allowed them to serve only if they kept their sexual orientation secret and the military did not learn of their sexual orientation,which was controversial.
Not all armed forces have policies explicitly permitting LGBT personnel. Generally speaking,Western European militaries show a greater tendency toward inclusion of LGBT individuals. As of 2022,more than 30 countries allow transgender military personnel to serve openly,such as Argentina,Australia,Austria,Belgium,Bolivia,Brazil,Canada,Chile,Czechia,Denmark,Estonia,Finland,France,Germany,Greece,Ireland,Israel,Japan,Mexico,the Netherlands,New Zealand,Norway,Spain,Sweden,Switzerland,Ukraine and the United States. Cuba and Thailand reportedly allowed transgender service in a limited capacity.
In the past most lesbian,gay,bisexual,transgender,and queer (LGBTQ) personnel had major restrictions placed on them in terms of service in the United States military. As of 2010 sexual orientation and gender identity in the United States military varies greatly as the United States Armed Forces have become increasingly openly diverse in the regards of LGBTQ people and acceptance towards them.
