What is the Jewish view on "don't ask, don't tell" and gays serving openly in the U.S. military? Does it matter that gays serve openly in the Israeli military?
The Reform Movement has a long history of support for civil rights for all people, regardless of sexual orientation. This includes the right of our LGBT citizens to serve in the military. The Central Conference of American Rabbis addressed this issue specifically in a resolution (
http://data.ccarnet.org/cgi-bin/resodisp.pl?file=military&year=2006) passed in 2006 in support of Jewish chaplains and military personnel. In this context, the resolution stated:
“ …….Our concern for the religious needs of Jewish members of the U.S. Armed Forces extends to those who are gay or lesbian. Our Reform Movement has staunchly opposed discrimination against gays and lesbians, and we have never supported the U.S. Military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Indeed, excluding chaplains who may be gay or lesbian may violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, as it restricts faith groups such as ours, which openly ordain gay and lesbian clergy, from commissioning chaplains from among the full ranks of their clergy……”
Among the action items in the resolution was included this section:
“ THEREFORE, the Central Conference of American Rabbis resolves to:…..
….4. Continue to advocate for the end of discrimination against gays and lesbians in the U.S. Armed Forces, including but not limited to gay and lesbian Rabbis and Cantors who may serve as chaplains. “
As Congress has been moving toward repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, the Reform Movement’s Religious Action Center issued the following statement:
“Reform Movement Applauds Steps Toward "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Repeal
Pelavin: “We must no longer allow prejudice to deprive our nation of the skills and commitment of talented men and women.”
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WASHINGTON, D.C., May 28, 2010 — In response to both the U.S. House House of Representatives’ vote and the Senate Armed Services Committee’s decision to move forward with repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy, Mark Pelavin, Associate Director of the Religious Action Center, issued the following statement:
We welcome last night’s long-overdue votes in both the Senate Armed Services committee and the House of Representatives to overturn “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” following a Pentagon review of the policy. Yesterday’s action, undertaken with the support of the White House and the Pentagon, reflects the urgency and seriousness of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy and the detrimental impact it has on our soldiers and our nation’s security. The 16-year-old policy, which was originally presented as a “compromise” that would respect servicemembers’ privacy and meet our military’s needs, has instead forced gay and lesbian servicemembers to live their lives in secret, always at risk of losing their ability to serve our country.
As Jews, we are guided by the very basic belief that all human beings are created b’tselem Elohim, in the Divine image. Regardless of context, discrimination against any person is inconsistent with this fundamental belief, for the stamp of the Divine is present in each and every one of us. The Reform Movement has long been outspokenly supportive of efforts to end discrimination against gays in the military; for several years, the RAC housed the Campaign for Military Service, a major organization dedicated to these efforts.
Regardless of sexual orientation, those Americans who risk their lives to serve our country and defend America’s freedom deserve our utmost gratitude and respect. Yesterday’s House action is a step toward creating a more just and compassionate military; we must no longer allow prejudice to deprive our nation of the skills and commitment of talented men and women.”
While I have seen opinion pieces in the mainstream press that cite the practice of the Israeli army as evidence that having LGBT soldiers serve openly does not impede morale, I have not seen that cited in Reform Jewish sources as a reason to support repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” Rather, the more compelling reason to support our LGBT brothers and sisters is simply that every human being is created in the image of God and, as such, is deserving of all the respect, dignity, and human rights as every other human being, including the right to serve our country.
