Military Professionalism - United States Air Force Academy

core values of leadership, professionalism, and respect for all, we are convinced that the
U.S. military can adjust and accommodate this change, just as it has others in history.”
Johnson, Jeh Charles and Carter F. Ham. Support Plan for Implementation: Report
of the Comprehensive Review of the Issues Associated with a Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask,
Don’t Tell’. Department of Defense, Nov. 30, 2010.
http://www.defense.gov/home/features/2010/0610_gatesdadt/DADTReport-
SPI_FINAL_20101130(secure-hires).pdf
Successful implementation would require leadership to set an example, a strong emphasis
on the professional obligations of all military personnel, and respect for all individuals.
There must be a pre-repeal stage in which new policies are clearly articulated, and
implementation stage which involves educating all troops as to the new policies, and a
sustainment stage which will involve follow-on reviews and monitoring.
“L.A. Group Renews Efforts to Establish a Gay Military Chaplaincy.” The Los
Angeles Times (Jan. 30, 1993): 4.
In a statement, the Rev. Troy Perry, moderator of Metropolitan Community Churches,
said the church had renewed its request to the Pentagon to allow its ministers to serve as
chaplains. At that time, the church had submitted the name of the Rev. Dusty Pruitt, a
lesbian who was thrown out of the Army Reserves in 1983 and sued the Army for
discrimination. If the Pentagon approves a sexually active homosexual as chaplain, it
would be taking a step beyond what most of the nation's major churches will permit.
With few exceptions, most denominations reject homosexual candidates for the ministry
who are sexually active.
Letter from Retired U.S. Army Chaplains to Sec. Gates and President Obama. Alliance
Defense Fund (Sept. 16, 2010).
http://oldsite.alliancedefensefund.org/userdocs/DADTLetter.pdf
This group of chaplains waited until they were retired to speak against government policy
out of respect for the president as Commander in Chief of the Armed Services. The
retired chaplains expressed concern that repealing “don’t ask, don’t tell” would threaten
the religious liberty of chaplains and Service members. Normalizing homosexuality
would force chaplains to either speak against official policies or compromise their beliefs
and teachings.
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