Are gay men allowed in the military
Home / gay topics / Are gay men allowed in the military
But beneath the surface of policy change, a quieter, more stubborn resistance remains — one that continues to shape the careers, opportunities, and well-being of LGBTQ+ service members in ways that most outside the system never see.
I’ve spent years standing up to those barriers — in courtrooms, in agency hearings, and in confidential backroom meetings where decisions that ruin careers get made without scrutiny.
That commonality felt, to me, like an interesting thing to explore."
Even with its homoerotic frisson, this sense of absurdity reflects what was a desperately sad and destructive real-life situation for many service members. These policies are medically outdated and legally indefensible — and I know that because I helped prove it in court.
The Department of Defense has stalled for years, citing “readiness” while ignoring scientific consensus.
But we can be — if we stop pretending the job is done.
About the Author:Nick Harrison is an attorney, advocate, and public servant who has dedicated his career to fighting for justice. LGBTQ+ veterans face higher rates of mental health challenges, but many avoid the VA entirely due to past experiences with discrimination or fear of being mistreated.
Psychiatric screenings were added to the induction process for servicemembers, and therefore those who were gay, lesbian, or bisexual were disqualified from entering service. I’ve seen firsthand where reform stalls, and more importantly, why.
These fights have taught me something that every policymaker needs to understand: change doesn’t stop with a signature on a policy memo.
If the series is renewed for further seasons, as Parker hopes, this policy should provide plenty of dramatic grist to go with the other storylines. It means tracking outcomes — promotions, schooling, retention — and asking whether the data matches our values.
I’ve spent my career fighting for the kind of military where every person has a fair shot to serve with dignity — not just in theory, but in practice.
It’s real mechanisms to review and check command authority, stronger IG involvement, independent complaint channels, and legal protections with teeth — because right now, too many LGBTQ+ troops are still at the mercy of someone who sees them as a problem.
Veterans Denied Fair Recognition and Care
The fight doesn’t end at discharge.
Texas (2003), which determined that laws prohibiting gay sex were unconstitutional. In 2014, the Clinton Library released notes from a conversation with Colin Powell, who at the time was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which suggest that Powell offered that a “possible solution” would be that “we stop asking.”
Thus, the policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was introduced by Clinton in 1993 as a compromise.
United States (2011), a federal district court ruled Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell unconstitutional, and another federal district court ruled similarly in Witt v. That starts with eliminating outdated medical policies and ensuring full access to enlistment and advancement for all qualified individuals — including those living with HIV or receiving gender-affirming care.
Where Cope White began boot camp in 1979, Boots relocates the action to 1990, just four years before "don't ask, don't tell" was introduced. We’re not there yet. And when hostile leadership exists, the burden is too often on the individual — not the institution — to challenge mistreatment.
This is where leadership matters.
The treatment of queer people in the armed forces has a fraught history—until the 1990s, military personnel could be discharged for homosexuality, and until 2010, gay, lesbian, and bisexual servicemembers had to keep their sexuality a secret. Those who engaged in homosexual acts could be dishonorably discharged from the military.
In 1957, the Crittenden Report, part of an investigation of the a board created for the Revision of Policies, Procedures and Directives Dealing With Homosexuals in the navy, found that there was “no sound basis for the belief that homosexuals posed a security risk.” Regardless, no suggestions were made for allowing gay men into the armed forces.
The Military and the Gay Rights Movement
One of the issues addressed during the Gay and Lesbian Rights Movement of the 1970s and 1980s was military discrimination.
In too many cases, complaints are ignored, records disappear, or investigations are quietly buried.
This isn’t theoretical. We owe them systemic redress. Created by Andy Parker, whose previous credits include Netflix's adaptation of Armistead Maupin's LGBT literary classic Tales of the City, Boots is faithful to the spirit of Cope White's book, which is candid, comedic and bigger on positivity than pity.
Particularly, there’s a whole subcollection of our LGBTQ+ Rights database dedicated to Military Service, which explores policies like Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Revolutionary Through World Wars
Homosexual activity was grounds for discharge from the armed services from as early as the Revolutionary War.
But LGBTQ+ people weren’t explicitly barred from military service until after World War I, when homosexuality was labeled in psychiatry as a mental or behavioral disorder. For many LGBTQ+ veterans — particularly those discharged under past discriminatory policies — the injustice continues. It will take intentional leadership, from the Pentagon to the platoon, and accountability for those who abuse their authority.