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OPINION Brothers and Sisters in Arms: Experiences of Gay Soldiers in the Australian Army what they set out to achieve; they feel they are valued and accepted for the contribution they make. For others, their resentment towards the Army and some of the people in it runs deep. These people have been prevented from meeting their full potential, and the Army is certainly poorer for this. Writing this article has forced me to think about what life is like for other people. Service life is fine for me, and for many others, but this is not the case for everyone. Striking a balance between maintaining institutional values while valuing and protecting the individuals within that institution has created winners and losers. Is it acceptable that some soldiers cannot go to work and be themselves? Is it acceptable that some soldiers are subjected to bullying and harassment in the workplace? The answer to these last two questions is ‘no’. It is not acceptable nor is it good for the Army to have people burdened by the constant threat of being ‘outed’ at work. Equally, it is not acceptable or productive when soldiers are bullied, harassed and feel incapable of doing their job. The Chief of Army spoke recently about treating our colleagues with respect and decency as a precondition of our employment. This seems straightforward. And it is. However, cultural change will only occur through training and leadership. Pathways to Change: Evolving Defence Culture seeks to shape our culture into the future. I had not read it and only did so because I was asked to write this article. It would seem that none of my peers has read it either. If few of us are engaged and committed to cultural change, will anything change? Will gay soldiers in 20 years’ time still be too afraid to tell their boss that they are gay because they feel they will miss out on a deployment? Given the persistence of these attitudes it seems highly likely. If we sit back and do nothing, nothing will change. It would be facile if the sum of this article is simply ‘say no to bullying’. Soldiers will continue to bully one another and we must learn to deal with it; Army culture must evolve to deal with it. An organisation that upholds the value of diversity and prides itself on the fact that it is fully inclusive and professional in all respects is a good start. Equally important is an understanding of what reduces our capability — that discrimination, harassment and abuse of just one of us diminishes our collective capability. We must maintain the belief that we are only as good as the soldier who stands beside us — that we are all brothers and sisters in arms. Australian Army Journal Culture edition 2013, Volume X, Number 3 Page 224
OPINION Brothers and Sisters in Arms: Experiences of Gay Soldiers in the Australian Army THE AUTHOR Captain Dominic Lopez is an infantry officer in the Australian Regular Army. He is a graduate of the Australian National University and the Royal Military College, Duntroon. He has commanded soldiers on operations in Afghanistan as a rifle platoon commander and is currently serving as an operations captain in the 3rd Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment. ENDNOTES 1 This title was inspired by the title of an article I read as part of my research. See D. Kaplan and E. Ben-Ari, ‘Brothers and Others in Arms: Managing Gay Identity in Combat Units of the Israeli Army’, Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, Vol. 29, No. 4, August 2000, pp. 396–432. 2 I use the term ‘gay soldiers’ to refer to male and female officers and other ranks with same-sex attraction. 3 G. Brown, Homosexuality and the Australian Defence Force: The Issues, Background Paper Number 16, 14 August 1992, p. 7. 4 The Australian Army and the Australian Bureau of Statistics do not maintain statistics on the number of same-sex defacto partnerships in the Australian Army. 5 Brown, Homosexuality and the Australian Defence Force, pp. 1–10. 6 M.J. Eliason and R. Schope, ‘Shifting Sands or Solid Foundation? Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Identity Formation’, The Health of Sexual Minorities, 2007, p. 18. Australian Army Journal Culture edition 2013, Volume X, Number 3 Page 225
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Australian Army Culture edition 201
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CONTENTS CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD....
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CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD When I assum
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CHIEF OF ARMY FOREWORD her gender,
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EDITORIAL the way in which it deals
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HISTORY Serving Their Country: A Sh
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HISTORY ‘A Homosexual Institution
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GENDER AND SEXUALITY Steyrs and She
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GENDER AND SEXUALITY Sexuality, Coh
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RELIGION Religious Diversity in the
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IDENTITY Military Retirement: Refle
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DISCIPLINE Hazing in the ADF: A Cul
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OPERATIONAL CULTURE The Myths of Cu
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ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Securing Arm
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ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Learning to
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Page 173 and 174: ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE Family Frien
Page 187 and 188: ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE From Institu
Page 203 and 204: OPINION Army’s Spirit Warrant Off
Page 205 and 206: OPINION Army’s Spirit Pride As RS
Page 207 and 208: OPINION Army’s Spirit Mateship ca
Page 209 and 210: OPINION Army’s Spirit Our people
Page 211 and 212: OPINION Army’s Spirit I think it
Page 213 and 214: OPINION Brothers and Sisters in Arm
Page 223: OPINION Brothers and Sisters in Arm
Page 227 and 228: OPINION On the Culture of the Austr
Page 245 and 246: OPINION Fifty Shades of Grey: Offic
Page 255 and 256: CREATIVE WRITING Lost in Translatio
Page 257 and 258: CREATIVE WRITING Lost in Translatio
Page 259 and 260: NOTES FOR CONTRIBUTORS NOTES FOR CO
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