Speech at UC San Diego, 29 April 2009
My name is Dan Choi. I am a West Point graduate. I am a Lieutenant in the United States Army.
I am gay.
I serve my country. I serve my country because I heard a leader say: “ASK NOT what your country can do for you… ASK what you can do for your country.” But when I step up to serve our country, to put my life on the line to protect my community, to protect my neighbors, to protect my family, to protect America, I am ordered… DON’T ASK. I am ordered… DON’T TELL.
I serve with 65,000 selfless gay and lesbian Americans; we are ordered to deny who we are. We’re ordered to HIDE. But I am not hiding anymore. I am not asking permission anymore. I am done ASKING. I am TELLING. I am gay.
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Comment
Posted April 30 2009
Bottom Line: My Infantry Battalion, Company and Platoon supports what we do; they are professional, cohesive and ready.
I just got back from a weekend of Army NatGuard Training with my infantry unit. On the range, rifle marksmanship. I was on the tower (Officer in Charge) giving commands for the zero-range. Between some iterations my platoon sergeant and I walked up and down the range with soldiers coaching them on fundamentals. An entire battalion from Philadelphia saw our range operating and asked to join us. We coached them also. Off time we practiced urban (MOUT) tactics and room-clearing in 4 man teams.
I thought: Nobody reads the ARMY TIMES or watches MSNBC. It’s business as usual. What about the drop in unit cohesion? What about the mass exodus in ranks? No threats? No discomfort? No crippling of a volunteer force? This is an infantry unit. Isn’t anyone scared, uncomfortable? I slept in my bunk in the open bay (WWII) barracks, even showered at the end of the day and no issues… Maybe nobody knows.
The most amazing moments happened as we all packed up and headed to the bar after 4 days of hard training. Dozens of senior enlisted, fellow officers and soldiers in my platoon pulled me aside and simply said- “We know… and we support you 100%... Keep the movement going.”
Make no doubt about it, what we are doing is FRONTLINE work. DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED BY HYPOTHESIS.
SOLDIERS LIVE IN THE REAL WORLD.
Comment
Posted April 07 2009
