Don't ask, don't tell? Students disagree

Second-year Law student Sionne Rosenfeld (left) and third-year Law student Oliver McKinstry (right) distribute information at an LGBT-sponsored protest at Penn Law School, which hosted a recruiter from the U.S. army on Friday. The protest took place in re

Why can two men hold guns but not hands?

This was the question of the day at the Law School last Friday, when colorful posters bearing that phrase and others plastered the building's walls.

Dozens of stickers that read "Shame on JAG" (the Judge Advocate General's Corps in the Army) were likewise stuck on about 50 protesters' bodies.

The posters and stickers were indicative of the protest, organized to challenge a U.S. military officer who came to recruit Law students.

In the past, Penn Law - which has a non-discrimination policy that includes the protection of sexual minorities - has banned the military from coming to recruit Law students in the building because of the military's controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which bans openly gay individuals from enlisting.

But the Law School was forced to let in the army officer in compliance in order to comply with the Solomon Amendment - reaffirmed last March by the U.S. Supreme Court - which mandates that all schools within a university must provide equal job-recruitment access to the military, or the entire university will lose federal funding.

Despite this mandate, students and faculty united against both the military's presence at the Law school, and the policy in general, in a protest organized by Lambda Law, an organization for LGBT Law students.

In total, six students out of over 200 signed up to interview with Capt. Jon Pavlovcak, the representative from JAG.

And of the six interviews, three were another form of protest.

Seth Blinder, a third-year Law student, revealed to Pavlovcak midway through his interview that he is gay, telling the recruiter he would be an asset to the military if he were allowed to join.

"I asked him how he felt about the policy," Blinder said. "He said his personal viewpoint did not matter."

Pavlovcak said he had no opinion in regard to the protest.

"It is often called the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy, but it is actually a law passed by Congress," Pavlovcak said. "To the extent that I've sworn an oath to the Constitution and Congress, that is what I do."

Some at the Law School felt the protest was disrespectful - particularly the sight of "Shame on JAG" stickers on the door where the interviews were taking place.

"I'm from a military family. I feel we should be welcoming them," first-year Law student Keven Schreiber said as he tacked up signs that read, "Support the JAG Officers."

The military has not been allowed inside the Law building for the past 10 years, said Gary Clinton, the Law school's associate dean for student affairs.

Clinton, who is openly gay and spoke at the protest, said he did not feel it changed anybody's mind, but he said it is good to make a statement.

In the meantime, the University has not officially changed its own nondiscriminatory policy, said Crystal Deazle, the Law school's co-associate director for Career Planning and Placement.

Comments (10)

LGTB ? Come on now, DP, keep up with the times. There's got to be more letters at the end of that acronym that stand for all sorts of interesting perversions--uh I mean Perfectly Valid Lifestyle Choice.

dear ok: you are making the mistake of thinking they hoped to accomplish something. These protests are about self-indulgence. That sentiment can be found explicitly in the article: "Clinton, who is openly gay and spoke at the protest, said he did not feel it changed anybody's mind, but he said it is good to make a statement."

I don't think the US military can afford to turn away any qualified soldiers that wish to aid in defending our nation. Who knows if the gay and lesbian individuals who would have served in the army could help stop the bloodshed in Iraq, but the US certainly isn't in the position to turn away help right now. This country is in the worst state of denial since Vietnam. Why don't we prohibit blacks and women from serving while we're at it? Everyone praises the Tuskegee airmen today, but our grandparents thought it was preposterous that African Americans could serve in the military and doubted they were even equal persons. Shame on you America.

These protesters are not only CHOOSING to ruin the moral fabric of our country but they are CHOOSING to de-moralize our troops and citizens as well.

Thanks for wasting the recruiter's time and taking out your anger on someone who has no influence over official government policy. Once again, the LGBT movement is doing nothing for its country.

Well I'm sure anyone with a dissenting opinion at this school, aka anything other than a liberal point of view..... would be hessitant to voice their opinion because of the criticism they'll receive. Being not quite extreme, but of the same general opinion, it's HARD for me to want to ever voice out my opinion when we are surrounded by LGTB everywhere. I'm not saying that a certain group of people don't have a right to their RIGHTS as Americans, it's just people are ENTITLED to their opinions no matter how different they are from your own. And they should be able to express that opinion without having fear of ridicule from students, professors, or otherws who could potentially seek them out or hold their view against them.

The policy does not prohibit gays from entering the military, it merely restricts their conduct (i.e. openly discussing their sexual orientation). This is similar to men having different conduct standards than women (i.e. different haircut requirements, dress uniforms, etc.) When you join the military, you lose certain rights, in accordance with the Uniform Code of Military Justice. For those LGBT people who can't understand that, find another profession.

You people who are opposed to the people who were in this protest just don't get it - I was in the service and was discharged under DADT. I didn't tell anyone anything; I lead a quiet discreet life off base with my partner. As I was getting ready for deployment, my partner of six years and I went for a farewell dinner, far off base. Another officer saw me having dinner with a man, and I was called in for questioning the next day and was discharged the day afterwards. These people are not protesting the military, or, as far as I understand it, even the policy - they are protesting the decision by the our congress to force the university to allow recruiters on campus that recruit for employers that discriminate in ways that are inconsistent with the policies of the university that everyone here chose to attend. So, I say this to the people who say they don't feel comfortable here because they're outnumbered by liberals and they're afraid that expressing a view against the LGBT community could have negative repercussions against them - Penn has spoken on this issue, and has decided that gay students and employees are welcome here. If you don't like it, I'm quite sure you were qualified for admission to Jerry Falwell's university in Virginia, and I'm quite sure someone else on the wait list would have been glad to take your spot at Penn. You chose to come somewhere that the way you live your life (in this case, choosing a bigoted lifestyle) was unwelcome - this is just a small taste of what happens to LGBT people everywhere else. Remember how this feels when you vote to make someone else feel the same way!

Who do you think pays these JAG officers? Your tax dollars. By wasting their time, you waste your own tax money, and for that matter, my money too. When you disagree with people, it is possible to do so without being disrespectful. Few would disagree with America's need for a military, although some would disagree with America's need for a straight military. Either way, we should respect those who protect this nation.

You're right. The troops probably can't get out of their cots in the morning because three Ivy League law students in Pennsylvania politely protested Don't Ask, Don't Tell. It must be terribly demoralizing. And before anyone gets too worried about "wasting" taxpayer dollars or the JAG recruiter's precious time: The protesters only took up empty slots that nobody else would take, scattered throughout the day. If they weren't there, the recruiter would be sitting in a room by himself for 20 minutes... making efficient use of taxpayer dollars, I'm sure.

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