LibGuides: Williams Institute Reading Room: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Resources in Law and Public Policy: 1. Military

Page Guide

Links

Palm Center (Legacy Site)
A think tank focusing on commissioning and disseminating research in the areas of gender, sexuality, and the military. The website includes publications and a Research Portal. Formerly affiliated with UC Santa Barbara, in 2011 the Palm Center became a part of the Williams Institute.
Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue Database
A project of the Robert Crown Library at Stanford Law School, the database contains primary materials on the U.S. Military's policy on sexual orientation, from World War I to the present.
Modern Military Association of America
"Formed through the merger of the American Military Partner Association and OutServe-SLDN, the Modern Military Association of America is the nation’s largest non-profit organization dedicated to advancing fairness and equality for the LGBTQ military and veteran community."

Films

*Available for use only by UCLA Law School students, faculty and staff; please request films at the Circulation Desk.

The Strange History of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato (HBO Documentary Films, 2011). Streaming via Kanopy (UCLA only); film information. A history of the U.S. military's ban on gays and lesbians.

Ask Not. Johnny Symons (New Day Films, 2008). DVD UB418.G38 A85 2008; also streaming via Kanopy (UCLA only). Film information. "The definitive story of the history and activism behind 'don't ask, don't tell.'"

Coming Out Under Fire. Arthur Dong (Fox Lorber Films, 1995). DVD D769.2 .B469 2004

Military, 2012 --

A Few Good Gays: The Gendered Compromises Behind Military Inclusion by Cati Connell
Call Number: UB418.G38 C665 2023
ISBN: 0520382706
Publication Date: 2022-12-06
The US military has done an about-face on gender and sexuality policy over the last decade, ending Don't Ask, Don't Tell, restrictions on women in combat, and transgender exclusion. Contrary to expectations, servicemembers have largely welcomed cisgender LGB individuals--yet they continue to vociferously resist trans inclusion and the presence of women on the front lines. In the minds of many, the embodied "deficiencies" of cisgender women and trans people of all genders puts others--and indeed, the nation--at risk. In this book, Cati Connell identifies the homonormative bargain that underwrites these uneven patterns of reception--a bargain that comes with significant concessions, upholding and even exacerbating race, class, and gender inequality in the pursuit of sexual equality. In this handshake deal, even the widespread support for open LGB service is highly conditional, revocable upon violation of the bargain. Despite the promise of inclusivity, in practice, the military has made room only for a "few good gays," to the exclusion of all others. But should equal access be the goal? How did we get from there to here? And where do we go next? In analyzing inclusion as a social movement aspiration, Connell shows that its steep price is exacted through the continued abjection of queered Others, both at home and abroad.
With Honor and Integrity: Transgender Troops in Their Own Words by Máel Embser-Herbert (Editor); Bree Fram (Editor)
Call Number: UB418.T72 W58 2021
ISBN: 1479801038
Publication Date: 2021-11-09
Heartfelt personal accounts from transgender people fighting for the right to serve in the military.
"Prior to coming out as transgender I served the first several years of my career under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," hiding my sexual orientation out of the constant fear of expulsion. I then found myself in the same predicament as when I first joined, wanting nothing more than to serve my country and do my job, but at the cost of sacrificing a major part of who I am. . . . This time, however, I decided that I could no longer sacrifice my own well-being, my own authentic self."--Mak Vaden, Warrant Officer 1, U.S. Army National Guard, 2006-present.
"I have traveled around the world. . . . I have been on five cutters with eleven years of sea time and commanded the Coast Guard cutter Campbell. I have negotiated treaties and fostered international law enforcement cooperation. I have stopped drug smugglers and seized illegal fishing vessels on the high seas. And, I also have gender dysphoria and identify as a trans woman."--Allison Caputo, Captain, US Coast Guard, 1995-present.
On January 25, 2021, in one of his first acts as President, Joe Biden reversed the Trump Administration's widely condemned ban on transgender people in the military. In With Honor and Integrity, Máel Embser-Herbert and Bree Fram introduce us to the brave individuals who are on the front lines of this issue, assembling a powerful, accessible, and heartfelt collection of first-hand accounts from transgender military personnel in the United States. Featuring twenty-six essays from current service members or veterans, these eye-opening accounts show us what it is like to serve in the military as a transgender person. From a religious affairs specialist in the Army National Guard, to a petty officer first class in the Navy, to a veteran of the Marine Corps who became "the real me" at age forty-nine, these accounts are personal, engaging, and refreshingly honest. Contributors share their experiences from before and during President Trump's ban--what barriers they face at work, why they do or don't choose to serve openly, and how their colleagues have treated them. Fram, a lieutenant colonel who is serving openly as a transgender woman in the US Space Force, and has advocated for open service policies, shares her experience in the aftermath of Trump's announcement of the ban on Twitter. Ultimately, Embser-Herbert and Fram provide an inspiring look at the past, present, and future of transgender military service. At a time when LGBTQ rights are under siege, and the right to serve continues to be challenged, With Honor and Integrity is a timely and necessary read.
Unbecoming: A Memoir of Disobedience by Anuradha Bhagwati
Call Number: VE25.B47 A3 2019
ISBN: 1501162543
Publication Date: 2019-03-26
A raw, unflinching memoir by a former US Marine Captain chronicling her journey from dutiful daughter of immigrants to radical activist effecting historic policy reform. After a lifetime of buckling to the demands of her strict Indian parents, Anuradha Bhagwati abandons grad school in the Ivy League to join the Marines--the fiercest, most violent, most masculine branch of the military--determined to prove herself there in ways she couldn't before. Yet once training begins, Anuradha's G.I. Jane fantasy is punctured. As a bisexual woman of color in the military, she faces underestimation at every stage, confronting misogyny, racism, sexual violence, and astonishing injustice perpetrated by those in power. Pushing herself beyond her limits, she also wrestles with what drove her to pursue such punishment in the first place. Once her service concludes in 2004, Anuradha courageously vows to take to task the very leaders and traditions that cast such a dark cloud over her time in the Marines. Her efforts result in historic change, including the lifting of the ban on women from pursuing combat roles in the military. A tale of heroic resilience grappling with the timely question of what, exactly, America stands for, Unbecoming is about one woman who learned to believe in herself in spite of everything. It is the kind of story that will light a fire beneath you, and inspire the next generation of indomitable female heroes.
Tell: Love, Defiance, and the Military Trial at the Tipping Point for Gay Rights by Margaret Witt; Tim Connor (Contribution by); Margarethe Cammermeyer (Contribution by)
Call Number: KF229.W58 W58 2017
ISBN: 1611688426
Publication Date: 2017-10-01
In 1993 Margie Witt, a young Air Force nurse, was chosen as the face of the Air Force's "Cross into the Blue" recruitment campaign. This was also the year that President Clinton's plan for gays to serve openly in the military was quashed by an obdurate Congress, resulting in the blandly cynical political compromise known as Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Contrary to its intent, DADT had the perverse effect of making it harder for gay servicemen and -women to fight expulsion. Over the next seventeen years more than 13,000 gay soldiers, sailors, marines, coast guard, and airmen and -women were removed from military service. That is, until Margie Witt's landmark case put a stop to it. Tell is the riveting story of Major Margaret Witt's dedicated and decorated military career as a frontline flight nurse, and of her love and devotion to her partner--now wife--Laurie Johnson. Tell captures the tension and drama of the politically charged legal battle that led to the congressional repeal of the controversial law and helped pave the way for a suite of landmark political and legal victories for gay rights. Tell is a testament to the power of love to transform hearts and minds, as well as a celebration of the indomitable spirit of Major Witt, her wife Laurie, her dedicated legal team, and the brave men and women who came forward to testify on her behalf in a historic federal trial.
Gay Mental Healthcare Providers and Patients in the Military by Elspeth Ritchie (Editor); Joseph Wise (Editor); Bryan Pyle (Editor)
Call Number: UB418.G38
ISBN: 331966025X
Publication Date: 2017-11-27
This volume tells the history of homosexuality in the United States military beginning in 1986, when the issue first came to the forefront of social consciousness. Each chapter is written through the eyes of gay mental healthcare providers, covering how to steadily adapt and learn to treat veterans struggling with the traumas associated with the stigma of homosexuality in service. Topics include the "Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell" (DADT) policy, its repeal in 2011, and addresses the current trends and challenges. Unlike any other professional book, this text includes the personal stories of gay military mental healthcare providers, as well as gay civilian clinicians who have worked with the military population in various segments in history. These accounts offer invaluable support for medical professionals working with this demographic. Chapters cover the various psychological damage service personnel encounter as it uniquely pertains to those struggling with the stigma of LGBTQ rights. Chapters include clinical pearls for particular psychiatric concerns, lessons learned for the future, and hard-earned successes as stigmas and perceptions evolved over time.
*eBook (UC users only).
True Colours: My Life as the First Openly Transgender Officer in the British Armed Forces by Caroline Paige
Call Number: HQ77.8.P35 A3 2017
ISBN: 178590132X
Publication Date: 2017
In the global theatre of contemporary warfare, courage and endurance are crucial for overcoming adversity. However, for Caroline Paige, a jet and helicopter navigator in the Royal Air Force, adversity was a common companion both on and off the field of battle.In 1999, Paige became the first ever openly serving transgender officer in the British military. Already a highly respected aviator, she rose against the extraordinary challenges placed before her to remain on the front line in the war on terror, serving a further sixteen years and flying battlefield helicopters in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.Detailing the emotional complexities of her transition, Paige reveals the external threats she faced in warzones around the world and the internal conflict she suffered while fighting prejudice at home. The result is a story of secrecy and vulnerability, of fear and courage, of challenge and hope.Criss-crossing battle lines both foreign and domestic, True Colours is the unflinchingly honest and inspirational account of one woman's venerable military career and the monumental struggle she overcame while grappling with gender identity on the quest for acceptance.
Soldier of Change: From the Closet to the Forefront of the Gay Rights Movement by Stephen Snyder-Hill; George Takei (Foreword by)
Call Number: UB418.G38 S69 2014
ISBN: 1612346979
Publication Date: 2014-09-15
When "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", the official U.S. policy on gays serving in the military, was repealed in September 2011, soldier Stephen Snyder-Hill (then Captain Hill) was serving in Iraq. Having endured years of this policy, which passively encouraged a culture of fear and secrecy for gay soldiers, Snyder-Hill submitted a video to a Republican primary debate held two days after the repeal. In the video he asked for the Republicans' thoughts regarding the repeal and their plans, if any, to extend spousal benefits to legally married gay and lesbian soldiers. His video was booed by the audience on national television. Soldier of Change captures not only the media frenzy that followed that moment, placing Snyder-Hill at the forefront of this modern civil rights movement, but also his twenty-year journey as a gay man in the army: from self-loathing to self-acceptance to the most important battle of his life: protecting the disenfranchised. Since that time, Snyder-Hill has traveled the country with his husband, giving interviews on major news networks and speaking at universities, community centers, and pride parades, a champion of LGBT equality.
Evolution of Government Policy Towards Homosexuality in the US Military: The Rise and Fall of DADT by James E. Parco (Editor); David A. Levy (Editor)
Call Number: UB418.G38 E93 2014
ISBN: 0415816033
Publication Date: 2013-10-11
Throughout history, homosexuality has been a complicating factor for men and women electing to serve in the armed forces of the United States. The right to serve became increasingly complicated when the Department of Defense responded to congressional legislation in 1993 by adopting a policy that later became known as "don't ask, don't tell" (DADT). DADT permitted homosexual members to serve in the forces, so long as they showed no evidence of homosexual behavior. The compromise policy remained in force until Congress passed the Done(tm)t Ask, Done(tm)t Tell Repeal Act of 2010 and finally, in September 2011, the ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly in the US armed forces officially came to an end. Reflecting on the 20-year period governed by DADT, this volume explores the history, culture, attitudes and impacts of policy evolution from the mid-20th Century through to the present day. It not only provides insight to the scholarly field of how the most powerful institution in the world has viewed and dealt with homosexuality as it transitioned into the 21st century, but it is also poised to become a seminal collection for researchers in the decades to come. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Homosexuality.
The End of Don't Ask, Don't Tell by J. Ford Huffman (Editor); Tammy S. Schultz (Editor); Marine Corps University Press Staff (Editor)
Call Number: UB418.G38 E532 2012
ISBN: 016090546X
Publication Date: 2012-04-18
Featuring 4 reports and 25 personal essays from diverse voices--both straight and gay--representing U.S. Marine Corps, Army, Navy, and Air Force veterans and service members, this anthology examines the impact of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and its repeal on 20 September 2011 in order to benefit policy makers, historians, researchers, and general readers. Topics include lessons from foreign militaries, serving while openly gay, women at war, returning to duty, marching forward after repeal, and support for the committed same-sex partners and families of gay service members.
*Also available online: The End of Don't Ask Don't Tell
Fighting to Serve: Behind the Scenes in the War to Repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" by Alexander Nicholson
Call Number: UB418.G38 N53 2012
ISBN: 1613743726
Publication Date: 2012

Military, 1990 - 2011

Our time : breaking the silence of "Don’t ask, don’t tell" by edited by Josh Seefried
Call Number: UB418.G38 O89 2011
ISBN: 1594203318
Publication Date: 2011
Understanding the Repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell by William D. Araiza; Dan Woods
Call Number: KF7265 .A965 2011
ISBN: 031427653X
Publication Date: 2011
The last deployment : how a gay, hammer-swinging twentysomething survived a year in Iraq by Bronson Lemer
Call Number: HQ75.8.L46 A3 2011
ISBN: 0299282147
Unfriendly fire : how the gay ban undermines the military and weakens America by Nathaniel Frank
Call Number: UB418.G38 F73 2009
ISBN: 0312373481
Homosexuality and the Military: Current Issues by CRS
Publication Date: 2009
*Available via HeinOnline (UCLA only)
Ask & tell : gay and lesbian veterans speak out by Steve Estes
Call Number: UB418.G38 E77 2007
ISBN: 0807831158
The Survival Guide: A Comprehensive Guide to "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and Related Military Policies by Servicemembers Legal Defense Network
Call Number: UB418.G38 S93 2007
Publication Date: 2007 (Fifth Edition)
"This Survival Guide explains the 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' law and how it is being used in the field. 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is also known within the United States military as the 'Homosexual Conduct Policy.' This Survival Guide provides survival tips for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender service members, and practical information for advocates and friends of gay and transgender service members." ("About the Survival Guide.")
Documenting Courage: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Veterans Speak Out by American Veterans for Equal Rights; Human Rights Campaign; Servicemembers Legal Defense Network
Call Number: UB418.G38 D58 2004
Publication Date: 2004
"It takes untold courage and conviction to risk your life for your country. Documenting Courage tells the stories of just a few of the proud GLBT veterans who have demonstrated such courage through their service in the U.S. armed forces ... Their service is a testament to the premise that patriotism knows no boundaries of sexual orientation or gender identity." (--from the Introduction.)
Don’t ask, don’t tell : debating the gay ban in the military by edited by Aaron Belkin and Geoffrey Bateman
Call Number: UB418.G38 D65 2003
ISBN: 1588261468
Officially gay : the political construction of sexuality by the U.S. military by Gary L. Lehring
Call Number: UB418.G38 L44 2003
ISBN: 1592130348
Beyond zero tolerance : discrimination in military culture by edited by Mary Fainsod Katzenstein and Judith Reppy
Call Number: UB417 .B48 1999
ISBN: 0847693155
Don’t : a reader’s guide to the military’s anti-gay policy by Janet E. Halley
Call Number: UB418.G38 H35 1999
ISBN: 0822322854
Gay rights, military wrongs : political perspectives on lesbians and gays in the military by edited by Craig A. Rimmerman
Call Number: UB418.G38 G35 1996
ISBN: 0815320868
Out in force : sexual orientation and the military by edited by Gregory M. Herek, Jared B. Jobe, Ralph M. Carney
Call Number: UB418.G38 O93 1996
ISBN: 0226400476
Stars without garters! : the memoirs of two gay GI’s in WWII by by C. Tyler Carpenter & Edward H. Yeatts.
Call Number: D811.5 .C285 1996 CAR
ISBN: 1886360049
*UCLA LGBT Center Library.
About face : a gay officer’s account of how he stopped prosecuting gays in the army and started fighting for their rights by James E. Kennedy
Call Number: U53.K46 A3 1995
ISBN: 1559722819
And the flag was still there : straight people, gay people, and sexuality in the U.S. military by Lois Shawver
Call Number: UB418.G38 S53 1995
ISBN: 1560249099
Gays and lesbians in the military : issues, concerns, and contrasts by Wilbur J. Scott and Sandra Carson Stanley, editors
Call Number: UB418.G38 G36 1994
ISBN: 0202305414
Serving in silence by Margarethe Cammermeyer with Chris Fisher
Call Number: UB418.G38 C36 1994
ISBN: 0670851671
Conduct unbecoming : lesbians and gays in the U.S. military : Vietnam to the Persian Gulf by Randy Shilts
Call Number: UB418.G38 S55 1993
ISBN: 0312342640
Gays and the military : Joseph Steffan versus the United States by Marc Wolinsky and Kenneth Sherrill, editors
Call Number: KF228.S74 S74 1993
ISBN: 0691019444
Lesbians in the military speak out by Winni S. Webber
Call Number: UB418.G38 W43 1993
ISBN: 096308223X
Exclusion : homosexuals and the right to serve by Melissa Wells-Petry
Call Number: UB418.G38 W45 1993
ISBN: 0895265044
Sexual orientation and U.S. military personnel policy : options and assessment by National Defense Research Institute
Call Number: UB418.G38 S48 1993
ISBN: 0833014412
*Also available online (UC only): Sexual Orientation & U.S. Military Personnel Policy

Older Titles and Government Documents

Friendly fire: how politics shaped policy on gays in the military. Chandler Burr. (State Bar of California, 1994) UB418.G38 B97 1994

Gays--in or out?: The U.S. military & homosexuals: a source book. (Brassey's, 1993) UB418.G38 G37 1993

Homosexuality and the military: a sourcebook of official uncensored U.S. government documents. (Diane Pub., 1993) UB418.G38 H65 1993

Summary report of the Military Working Group. (Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1993) UB418.G38 S95 1993. Also online via HeinOnline (UCLA only).

Policy implications of lifting the ban on homosexuals in the military: hearings before the Committee on Armed Services, House of Representatives, One Hundred Third Congress, first session, hearings held May 4 and 5, 1993. (G.P.O., 1993) Y4.AR5/2A:993-94/18. Also available online via HeinOnline (UCLA only).

Homosexuals in the military: policies and practices of foreign countries: report to the Honorable John W. Warner, U.S. Senate. United States General Accounting Office, 1993) UB418.G38 U543 1993

Memorandum for the Secretary of the Army, Secretary of the Navy, Secretary of the Air Force, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff: subject: policy on homosexual conduct in the Armed forces. (Office of the Secretary of Defense, 1993) UB418.G38 U57 1993

Honor bound: a gay American fights for the right to serve his country. Joseph Steffan. (Villard Books, 1992) VB324.G38 S74 1992

Defense force management: DOD's policy on homosexuality: report to Congressional Requesters. (United States General Accounting Office, 1992) UB418.G38 U54 1992

Defense force management: statistics related to DOD's policy on homosexuality: supplement to a report to Congressional requesters. (United States General Accounting Office, 1992) UB418.G38 U54 1992a

Gays in uniform: the Pentagon's secret reports. Edited by Kate Dyer. (Alyson Publications, 1990) UB418.G38 G38 1990

My country, my right to serve: experiences of gay men and women in the military: World War II to the present. Mary Ann Humphrey. (HarperCollins, 1990) UB418.G38 H86 1990

Perverts by official order: the campaign against homosexuals by the United States Navy. Lawrence R. Murphy. (Haworth Press, 1988) VB324.G38 M87 1988 (*Supplement #1 to Journal of Homosexuality.)

Fighting back: lesbian and gay draft, military, and veterans issues. Katherine Bordonnay, et al, authors; Joseph Schuman, Kathleen Gilberd, editors. (National Lawyers Guild's Military Law Task Force, 1985) UB343 .F46 1985

Homosexuals and the military: a study of less than honorable discharge. Colin J. Williams and Martin S. Weinberg. (Harper & Row, 1971) UH630 .W55 1971