Don't harass Military should let homosexuals serve openly Last week, the British government lifted its ban on homosexuals in the military. This change in policy follows a September ruling from the European Court of Human Rights in favor of four people who were dismissed from the British military because of their sexual orientation. The decision brings Britain in league with the majority of European nations. Previously, Britain had overtly prohibited gays from serving in the military - unlike the U. S. armed forces, which follow a "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Though it may not be an outright ban on gays in the military, the "don't ask, don't tell" policy still denies gays and lesbians the right to serve their country like any other American citizen. The "don't ask, don't tell" policy forbids military officials from making inquiries about soldier's sexual orientation, but it also allows them to discharge anyone who openly admits to being homosexual. This is intolerant and a clear violation of civil and human rights. It forces gays and lesbians to choose between serving in the military and freely expressing themselves, a choice no one should have to make - anyone who does declare their homosexuality can be discharged. Anyone who is gay and wishes to serve in the military must live in silence and denial. Clearly the "don't ask, don't tell" policy has done little to improve the status of homosexuals in the military. According to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, a legal watchdog organization, the Pentagon fires three to four people for being lesbian, gay or bisexual every day. In addition, the policy not only forces gays and lesbians to remain in the closet, it creates more problems than it solves. In some ways it can make things worse for gay servicemen and women - there have been several cases where members of the armed forces were harassed for their known or suspected sexual predisposition yet would not come forward for fear of being punished under "don't ask, don't tell." This problem only highlights the homophobia inherent in the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Recently, this problem has publicly manifested itself in the trial and conviction of Specialist Justin Fisher who murdered Private First Class Barry Winchell, who was suspected of being gay. But for every publicized case of harassment motivated by homophobia, there are many more cases that go unnoticed. The SLDN "documented 400 incidents of anti-gay harassment, including death threats and verbal gay-bashing" in 1998 according to their web page (www.sldn.org). Those incidents marked a 120 percent increase in harassment from 1997. There is no good reason to prohibit gays and lesbians from serving in the armed forces. Homosexuals have always been active in the military, despite the prohibition. Inappropriate sexual behavior is prohibited by fraternization policies that affect all personnel, and gays and lesbians are not more likely to engage in this type of behavior than anyone else. The belief that gays in the military would make the service less effective is simply homophobic. Sexual orientation is merely one aspect of a person, and has no bearing on the way one would carry out military service. Gays and lesbians are ordinary people and must be granted the same rights as anyone else. The U.S. armed forces should dispense with "don't ask, don't tell" and allow gays and lesbians to serve freely and openly in the armed forces. Originally on page 4A in the 1-19-2000 issue of the Daily.