THE GUARDIAN: Openly gay people will now be able to serve in the US military after repeal of controversial 18-year-old DADT law
An 18-year-old law that prevented serving US military personnel from disclosing that they were gay has been formally repealed.
At one minute past midnight eastern time (0401 GMT), the controversial don't ask don't tell (DADT) law was abolished after its repeal was signed into law some nine months ago.
Introduced by President Clinton in 1993 as a compromise step to full equality, DADT allowed gay and lesbian members of the military to serve only if their sexuality remained secret or was not reported.
The Servicemembers Legal Defence Network estimates that since the law's introduction, 13,000 gay men and lesbians have been discharged after their sexual orientation was revealed.
In some cases dismissals were made on the basis of testimony from jilted lovers or those with personal grievances. » | Shiv Malik and agencies in Washington | Tuesday, September 20, 2011
