Knights Out says, “The little secret here is that the military and the Academy can actually manage change WELL, largely through the leadership of those willing to stand up and be counted.”
16 months after the ban on openly gay military personnel was repealed, several openly gay West Point cadets took same-sex dates to the Military Academy’s formal winter dances. The students, one a sophmore and the other a junior, posed for pictures that were then circulated by Knights Out, which is an “organization of West Point Alumni, Staff and Faculty who are united in supporting the rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender soldiers to openly serve their country.”
As the Daily Mail points out, until the repeal of the “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” legislation in September, 2011, “A same-sex date at USMA, the oldest military academy in the U.S., would have been unheard of.” A representative of Knights Out wrote, “This, ladies and gentleman, is progress at an Academy in which we can be proud. A member of the Academy’s Spectrum group and his boyfriend at Yearling Winter Weekend last weekend.”
Very encouraging. Very decent. Good.
This is a new era for the military. I suspect fellow soldiers will have an easier time accepting gay camerades, faster than the public will. I was in the military myself and I had friends that were gay, but when the uniform is on, it’s all about the mission and respect. It just didn’t matter and we did things to protect our team from harm. Truth be told, there was some anti-gay sentiment and I’m sure there will still be some issues, but hopefully people respect the soldier, marine, airman, or sailor for their service and their partner.