Jamie Weinstein

During President Obama’s State of the Union address he declared, “This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country…”

President O is right on policy, but wrong on timing.

Now is not the time.

First, let us be clear that prohibiting gays from serving openly in the military is not a completely irrational policy, as some seem to glibly suggest. There is logic behind it. After all, men and women do not sleep in the same barracks for obvious reasons.

Nonetheless, there is ample evidence of gays openly serving in other militaries around the world without serious problem. And not “theoretical” militaries. Real ones that actually engage in combat, like the British Armed Forces and Israel Defense Forces.

In a study of four militaries that allow gays to serve openly (Canada, Australia, the UK, and Israel), Aaron Belkin and the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military interviewed 104 experts comprising “every identifiable pro-gay and anti-gay expert on the policy change in each country.”

“Not a single one of the 104 experts interviewed,” Belkin writes,  “believed that the Australian, Canadian, Israeli, or British decision to lift their gay bans undermined military performance, readiness, or cohesion, led to increased difficulties in recruiting or retention, or increased the rate of HIV infection among the troops.”

Moreover notes Belkin, “Even the leading opponents of allowing gays into the military concluded that the lifting of the bans did not damage the armed forces.”

In the words of one Australian Commodore (equivalent to a one-star admiral in the United States), lifting the ban was “an absolute non-event.” But it wasn’t obvious that allowing gays to serve openly would indeed be a non-event. Like in the United States currently, surveys of soldiers in some of the aforementioned countries demonstrated that military members opposed lifting the ban and many soldiers even indicated that they would not serve if the ban on gays serving openly in the military was lifted. Belkin writes,

“In a 1985 survey of 6,500 male soldiers, the Canadian Department of National Defense found that 62 percent of male service members would refuse to share showers, undress, or sleep in the same room as a gay soldier, and that 45 percent would refuse to work with gays. A 1996 survey of 13,500 British service members reported that more than two-thirds of male respondents would not willingly serve in the military if gays and lesbians were allowed to serve.”

But, as Belkin concludes, “when Canada and Britain subsequently lifted their gay bans, these dire predictions were not confirmed.”

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The fact that militaries in Israel and the UK—militaries that regularly engage in conflict—have had no problem with military effectiveness since lifting the ban on gays in the military provides the best evidence that few problems will arise if the ban on gays serving openly in the U.S. military is lifted. The fact of the matter is there is ample evidence that gays can serve openly in an effective, active military without serious problem. Why should the American military deny itself the resources of able men and women?

Indeed, at times it seems like we are shooting ourselves in the foot. Our Armed Forces, for instance, are not bursting at the seams with Arabic translators. We could probably use more. So how can we justify forcing nearly 60 Arabic translators out of the military in the last half dozen years simply because they were gay?

So, yes, what President Obama is suggesting, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen has endorsed, makes lots of sense. It is indeed the right policy move.

However, making this change while we are a nation at war is probably not the wisest play. This is hardly the most pressing issue for the military at the moment. The military needs to be focused on other things at this particular time in history, like winning two live wars.

Social campaigners will cry foul and demand immediate action. But this isn’t a game. Even though the lifting of the ban on gays in the military has gone smoothly in other countries, we shouldn’t upset the equilibrium of a military that is functioning at the highest levels in the midst of conflict.

Mr. President, by all means, push Congress to lift the ban on gays in the military. But just don’t rush it. The present policy has been working pretty well. We can afford to wait until the military has a lighter workload before we make this change in policy.

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