In his State of the Union address, Barack Obama said it’s finally time to repeal the decades-long policy of “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

Two days ago, the first steps were taken to remove homophobia from our armed forces.
Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Defense Secretary Robert Gates testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that they’d support the measure. Yesterday, Mullen’s predecessor Colin Powell, who helped write the original policy, threw his support behind its repeal as well.

This reversal has been a long time coming. It’s embarrassing that in this country we ask gay men and women to risk their lives to protect us while we force them to deny something so fundamental to their beings. We should applaud all our soldiers for their courage, not shame them for who they are.

I was surprised to hear Obama take so forceful a stand against “don’t ask, don’t tell.” He spent most of his State of the Union backtracking from the ultra-liberal policies that have lately lost him so much support. It’s a testament to his moral leadership that he refused to abandon so noble a cause.

But if Obama’s statement caught me off guard, Mullen’s blew me away. “No matter how I look at the issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens,” he said. Pretty forceful language from the leader of an institution not exactly known for its liberalism.

Mullen’s endorsement of Obama’s shift further proves how far this country has come in recent years. It also reminds us how far we still have to go.

If Congress repeals “don’t ask, don’t tell,” gays will be allowed to give their lives for their country and they won’t have to hide in the closet to do it. In return, America must show them its respect. That means no longer treating gays as second-class citizens. It means extending to them the same rights straight Americans enjoy.

The world is changing at breathtaking speeds. Those who continue to preach hate are fighting a losing battle. The United States armed forces have taken a stand for equality. Who will be next?
   
Nathaniel French is a junior theater major. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].