LGBT in the Australian military

[Posted by Aditya Bondyopadhyay on ap-rainbow Yahoo! Group, 08 October 2008]

Queers in our military
Wednesday, 08 October 2008

What's life like for gays and lesbians in our services? Tim Wright takes a tour of duty.

Scantily clad Greek warriors, sweaty and all covered in dirt, would return to base after a long day's battle and quite openly — perhaps even proudly — engage in sensuous gay sex. Unlike American soldiers today, the ancient Greeks definitely weren't subject to a "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

In fact, instead of chastising these men for their wild behaviour, the authorities offered unqualified support. Homosexuality was, in their view, an indispensable weapon against adversaries — one which boosted troop morale and promoted bravery

To the disappointment of some, no government in modern times has quite seen things this way. In 1992, when Australia lifted its ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military, the motivation was more to do with ending discrimination than enhancing military performance.

I decided to find out, 15 years on, whether the Australian military has become anywhere near as supportive of queers as the militaries in ancient Greece were, or whether it remains — despite the change in policy — an environment of suppression and torment.

I spoke to Stuart O'Brien, 36, a Navy officer and chair of a gay and lesbian information service for military personnel. He was central to a successful lobbying effort in 2005 to secure equal benefits for the same-sex partners of men and women in the service.

"I haven't faced any kind of discrimination or harassment because of my sexual orientation," O'Brien says. "The fact that I've got a same-sex partner has never impacted on my work." But he admits that many people still perceive the defence forces as homophobic. "That's why it's important we get ourselves out into the public eye."

And that's precisely what they did in Sydney this year. For the first time, queer officers got permission from the military chief to have an official float in the Mardi Gras Parade. "We didn't do it in uniform, but that wasn't a big issue for us," O'Brien says. "What's important is that we did it under the defence banner. There was a big roar from the crowd when they saw us. It was amazing."

According to O'Brien, defence force policies have been fairly effective at stamping out harassment against queers. "There are probably still a few dinosaurs around who aren't accepting of us, I suppose. But the people we're recruiting today are different. Nearly all of us know people these days who are gay."

I also had a chat with Kristy Green, 30, who is a lesbian working as a defence civilian. "I've never experienced harassment, but I'm sure things happen from time to time," she says. "I've always been very comfortable and open about my sexuality."

Green describes working for defence as being part of a "big family", especially her stint on HMAS Sydney: "I felt as though I had 50 brothers protecting me at the one time."

Her partner of four years is also in the military.

"I think that times have changed within the defence forces," Green says. "There's a more understanding culture now."

Australia is certainly a long way ahead of our close ally the United States, which still discharges soldiers from service at a rate of two to three a day if they are found to be gay. Several of Stuart O'Brien's American friends have been kicked out of the military and others are currently "under investigation".

The "don't ask, don't tell" policy — which was introduced in 1993 by Bill Clinton — prevents gay or bisexual people from disclosing their sexuality or speaking about same-sex relationships. Previously, they were banned outright from serving

According to the policy, letting queers serve openly 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"

O'Brien travelled to Washington, DC, earlier this year to tell the Americans that they should change their policy because it's discriminatory and makes no sense. Many agreed with him.

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has told voters he will scrap the policy if elected, but his Republican rival John McCain has vouched to keep it.

Other countries still ban queers altogether, including Brazil, China, Iran, Mexico, Singapore and, oddly enough, Greece. Russia excludes them in peacetime but not wartime, although even in wartime they only accept "well-adjusted homosexuals" — none of your effeminate types.

In Turkey, military service is compulsory for all fit men, but if you're gay you can get out of doing it. Yet another reason why it's better to be gay than straight, I suppose — like sharing your partner's clothes. Heterosexual men have been known to feign homosexuality to avoid service.

Most countries, however, see things as we do: a private's sexuality is, well, private and in no way relevant to his or her performance. But some countries have progressed even further than Australia. For example, the Canadians have had gay military weddings since 1995. How long until that happens here

"I don't think Australia is ready for gay marriage yet," O'Brien tells me. "But my partner and I are having a commitment ceremony later in the year."

Speaking with O'Brien and Green about their time in the armed forces — including in Iraq — I couldn't help wondering why anyone, queer or not, would choose a military career. O'Brien says it was about "serving your country" – words that made me cringe.

"I wouldn't say I want to go out there and shoot 'em up," he explains. "I spend a lot of time doing paperwork. But I guess that kind of thing does go with the job."

Yes, I guess it does. And so long as politicians are willing to send soldiers to war, there's no good reason why queers should be excluded.