Tim Huelskamp

U.S. Rep. Tim Huelskamp (R-Kan.) is sponsoring the bill, H.R. 3828, which stipulates that the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" cannot be used to permit gay weddings on military bases, or force chaplains to do anything against their beliefs, including marrying gay partners.

According to Huelskamp's bill:

"A military chaplain shall not be directed, ordered, or required to perform any duty, rite, ritual, ceremony, service, or function that is contrary to the conscience, moral principles, or religious beliefs of the chaplain or contrary to the moral principles or religious beliefs of the chaplain's faith group."

[...]

"A military installation or other property owned, rented, or otherwise under the jurisdiction or control of the Department of Defense shall not be used to officiate, solemnize, or perform a marriage or marriage-like ceremony involving anything other than the union of one man with one woman."

Huelskamp's bill aims to override previous Defense Department guidance that permits, but does not obligate, military chaplains to perform same-sex ceremonies, including on military installations, where permitted under state law.

According to a memorandum issued Sept. 30, 2011, following the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Clifford L. Stanley, said that military chaplains "may participate in or officiate any private ceremony, whether on or off a military installation, provided that the ceremony is not prohibited by applicable state and local law."

"Further, a chaplain is not required to participate in or officiate a private ceremony if doing so would be in variance with the tenets of his or her religion or personal beliefs," Stanley wrote.

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) Executive Director, Army Veteran Aubrey Sarvis, blasted the bill, calling it "another round of resistance tactics that have already been rejected by Congress and the American people."

"There is no need for the so-called 'protections' in this bill or the proposed regulations," Sarvis said, in a statement. "No chaplain today is being required or pressured to marry anyone, straight or gay. Period."

"The bill's ban on use of military facilities and chaplains officiating at ceremonies for gay and lesbian service members is nothing more than plain, old-fashion discrimination. There is no place for that prejudice in our armed forces or in our country," said Sarvis.

Huelskamp said his bill -- the Military Religious Freedom Protection Act -- will ensure military facilities "are not used in contravention to the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which states that marriage is between one man and one woman only."

"Military installations exist to carry out the national defense of our nation, not to facilitate a narrow social agenda," Huelskamp said.

The bill has been referred to the House Armed Services.

Mike Reynolds

State Rep. Mike Reynolds authored a measure that would prohibit anyone who was ineligible to serve in the U.S. armed forces under federal regulations that were in effect on Jan. 1, 2009, from serving in the state's Guard.

Reynolds said the state is allowed to set its own standards for service in the National Guard and is not required to duplicate standards for the rest of the U.S. military.

House Bill 2195 would amend existing state law that allows any able-bodied U.S. citizen and who is at least 18 years old and not yet 70 to serve in the Oklahoma National Guard.

When contacted by LGBTQ Nation on Tuesday, the spokesman for the Guard, Lt. Colonel Max Moss said that the Guard would not comment on the pending legislation.

A spokesperson for Reynolds said Tuesday that the measure was being introduced in response to requests from members of the Oklahoma National Guard.

Toby Jenkins, executive director of Tulsa-based Oklahomans for Equality, told LGBTQ Nation that Reynolds' measure is mean-spirited and damaging to the morale of gay Oklahoma Guard troops that are currently serving in combat operations in Afghanistan.

He said his group is opposed to the the bill, urging the state's other legislators to kill the measure.

Jenkins also pointed out that it was the Tulsa based group's center that had U.S. Military recruiters on the premises the day that DADT was formally repealed last September 20th ready to sign up new recruits.

"Oklahoma has serious pressing issues -- meth crimes, prisons that are filling up too fast, schools that aren't working and this is the issue he picks as the most serious in need of attention?" Jenkins said.

"The other disturbing aspect to his bill," Jenkins added, "is that there is a section which would allow for a potential recruit to be interrogated about their sexual orientation -- this is simply intrusive."

Jenkins said that his group will work with LGBTQ allies in the state legislative committee where it currently is pending to try to stop the bill before it comes to a floor vote.

"It is this sort of thing, Reynolds and, well, even Sally Kern, which gives other people the idea that every Oklahoman is homophobic," Jenkins said.

"But that is not the reality. The truth is that there are more inclusive and accepting persons in this state than outright bigots," he said.

These factors are important given the substantial amount of negativity and outright hostility thrust upon LGBT persons in general by the influential and vocal opposition that comprise far-right conservatives and religious so-called "family values" organisations.

And this year, while several individuals were outspoken in their support for LGBTQ rights, there was one quiet and unassuming figure, who stood out for his forceful, determined and unwavering support of gay and lesbian persons being able to proudly wear the uniform of the United States Armed Forces -- Admiral Mike Mullen, our choice for "Ally of the Year."

Mullen -- the now-retired Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff -- with the tacit approval of not only his immediate supervisor, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, but with the additional backing of his Commander-In-Chief, President Barack Obama, tirelessly campaigned to repeal the nearly two decades old policy known as "Don't Ask-Don't Tell."

The “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, enacted under President Bill Clinton in 1993 after Congress passed a law that same year banning gays from serving in the military, was a compromise that would prohibit openly gay individuals from serving in the U.S. military, but it also prohibited the military from asking service members their sexual orientation.

More than 14,000 service members were dismissed from the U.S. military over the 17 years that the policy was in effect -- a policy that Mullen said forced gays and lesbians to "lie about who they are."

“[S]peaking for myself and myself only, it is my personal belief that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do. No matter how I look at this issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens.

“For me personally, it comes down to integrity — theirs as individuals and ours as an institution.”

Mullen faced strident criticism from a ranging opposition comprised of powerful political figures and GOP lawmakers who insisted repealing the policy would damage the combat effectiveness and morale of service men and women serving, particularly those in combat units in the war zones.

Mullen's greatest opposition though came from within the ranks as the other service chiefs voiced their opposition or expressed doubts as to whether or not repeal would be of benefit to the forces, concerned that the "good order, discipline, and morale" of units would be negatively impacted.

General James F. Amos, the commandant of the U. S. Marine Corps, said that allowing gays to serve openly in the military could result in more casualties because openly gay troops on the battlefield could pose "a distraction."

And as repeal efforts got underway, Mullen was quick to answer critics, and in one case publicly rebuked a decorated U.S. Army commander, who wrote in a letter to Stars and Stripes that he did not believe that most military personnel support repeal of the policy.

In a press briefing, Mullen suggested that the letter's author, Lieutenant General Benjamin Mixon, should consider resigning and then added senior officers are obligated to follow policies enunciated by the President, and those who feel they can’t have the option to “vote with your feet” and retire from military service.

As the close of 2010 brought hearings on the legislation to repeal the policy, Mullen repeatedly rejected opposition efforts that troops should be surveyed on whether to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," calling the idea “dangerous,” and an "incredibly bad precedent" to allow troops to vote on military policy.

On Sept. 20, 2011, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was formally repealed and for the first time in its history, the U.S. military welcomed openly gay and lesbian service members into its ranks.

Two weeks later, on Oct. 3, 2011, Mullen retired, marking the end of a distinguished 43-year career in the U.S. Navy.

And at a ceremony held in his honor, President Barack Obama acknowledged the services rendered to the nation and its citizens by the outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff:

[...] “And today, thanks to Mike’s principled leadership, our military draws its strength from more members of our American family. Soon, women will report for duty on our submarines. And patriotic service members who are gay and lesbian no longer have to lie about who they are to serve the country that they love. History will record that the tipping point toward this progress came when the 17th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff went before Congress, and told the nation that it was the right thing to do."

The Admiral’s unwavering support for the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” earned him the gratitude of gay and lesbian service members, as well as future gay and lesbian civilians who wished to enter the armed services but had been prevented from doing so by the policy.

Researchers have consistently linked prejudice and stigma against gays and lesbians to increased feelings of depression and anxiety, and Fischer skews such research to make it seem that gay people are intrinsically unstable.

Such claims are no surprise coming from Fischer, who has warned that the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was a “treasonous” act that would leave America “with a military comprised of nothing but sexual deviants.”

Fischer also said that gays “represent an increased risk to national security,” calling openly gay service in the military “foolish.”

While referencing the Bradley Manning case, Fischer said that “if you have compassion for people, you want homosexuals to get help,” and that gays should be prohibited from handling “sensitive national security information.”

Watch:

Rick Perry

“Here’s my issue. This is about my faith, and I happen to think, you know, there are a whole hosts of sins," Perry responded. "Homosexuality being one of them, and I’m a sinner and so I’m not going to be the first one to throw a stone."

After her confrontation with Perry, Green said she disagreed with the Texas governor’s position on the issue.

“I’m openly bisexual and I don’t want to be told that if I wanted to serve in the military that I couldn’t, and I just think that policy is completely ridiculous that he thinks that. I just don’t like it,” Green said. “Him or nobody should be able to tell somebody who they can or can’t love.”

Perry was unaware that she was bisexual when she approached him with the question.

The girl's father, Todd Green, a professor at Luther College, said he and his daughter came to the event after seeing Perry's campaign ad airing in Iowa that questions why gays can serve openly in the military while, "our kids can't openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school."

The conference report on the fiscal year 2012 defense authorization bill hammers out the differences in the House and Senate versions of the legislation while allocating $662 billion in funds for military programs and troop compensation.

Absent from the final bill is language found in the House version that prohibits both military chaplains and bases from being involved in same-sex wedding ceremonies. Rep. W. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) inserted the language during the markup of the bill.

Additionally, conferees dropped language in the House bill that was added by Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) reiterating the Defense Department must comply with the Defense of Marriage Act.

LGBT advocates had railed against the Akin amendment as an extension of DOMA beyond the restrictions that are already imposed by the anti-gay law. Its adoption would have rolled back Pentagon guidance issued on Sept. 30 saying military chaplains could officiate at same-sex weddings if they so chose and military facilities could be involved in such events. The Hartzler amendment was seen as simply redundant to existing restrictions under DOMA.

Instead of these provisions, conferees settled on a provision found in the Senate version of the bill that Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) added by amendment on the floor. The language allows chaplains who don’t wish to perform same-sex weddings to opt out of doing so.

“A military chaplain, who, as a matter of conscience or moral principle, does not wish to perform a marriage may not be required to do so,” the language reads.

The Senate language was seen as simply reiterating the principles of the Pentagon guidance — but with different wording — because its passage would impose no restrictions on a military chaplain’s ability to marry a same-sex couple.

Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, commended conferees for omitting the anti-gay language in the House bill in favor of the Senate provision.

“We congratulate the House and Senate conference committee for having struck the correct balance on the chaplains provisions,” Sarvis said. “Clearly, there was no place for the restrictive Akin language as the Defense Department continues to move forward on effective implementation of open service in our military.”

However, the conference report also leaves out language from the Senate bill that would have repealed Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the long-standing military law classifying consensual sodomy for both gay and straight service members as a crime.

The Pentagon had asked for repeal of the sodomy ban as part of the Comprehensive Review Working Group report on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” that was issued late last year. The Commission on the 50th Anniversary of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, informally known as the Cox Commission, had also called for an end to the sodomy ban.

LGBT advocates had also been calling for a repeal of the provision. Sarvis expressed disappointment that conferees didn’t include the Senate language in the conference bill.

SLDN

Jase Daniels

“Today, I took an oath and affirmed to defend the Constitution of the United States of America,” Daniels said in statement. “I am humbled as I am reinstated to the job I love and by the enormous support I have received on this momentous day. I look forward to returning to the Defense Language Institute and ultimately, my career in the military.”

Formerly known as Jason Knight, Daniels was readmitted to the armed forces as a result of a lawsuit that Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and the law firm of Morrison & Foerster filed on behalf of service members discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” seeking to re-enlist in the armed forces, according to SLDN.

Daniels, 29, is one of three plaintiffs in the case, Almy v. United States, which was filed in 2010. The lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of the discharges under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” — which was lifted Sept. 20 — and seeks their reinstatement to active duty. Resolutions for the other plaintiffs — Mike Almy, a gay former Air Force communications officer, and former Air Force Staff Sergeant Anthony Loverde — are expected soon.

Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said Daniels’ reinstatement reflects the changes of the post-"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" military.

“The reinstatement of Petty Officer Daniels into the United States Navy underscores that all qualified and needed service members are now officially welcomed back into the ranks,” Sarvis said. “The new policy and regulations in this post-repeal era make this historic occasion possible.”

Daniels isn’t the first service member discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” to be readmitted in the armed forces. That distinction went to Lee Reinhart, who re-entered the armed forces by joining the Navy Reserves in October.

Late Thursday, the Senate approved by a 93-7 vote its version of the fiscal year 2012 defense authorization bill, which authorizes $662 billion in spending for military programs and troop compensation. The House passed its version of the bill in May, which authorizes $690 billion in defense funds.

The bills diverge in numerous ways and the conference committee will have to resolve the differences. But one issue in particular that is stirring up social conservatives and LGBT advocates is the involvement of military chaplains and facilities in same-sex weddings.

On Wednesday, the Senate approved by voice vote as part of its version of the bill an amendment by Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) allowing military chaplains to opt out of performing same-sex marriage ceremonies.

“A military chaplain, who, as a matter of conscience or moral principle, does not wish to perform a marriage may not be required to do so,” the amendment states.

The amendment is apparently in response to guidance the Pentagon issued on Sept. 30 permitting chaplains to officiate over same-sex weddings if they so choose. On the same day, the Defense Department issued guidance saying military bases could be used for same-sex weddings, although the Wicker amendment makes no mention of the use of military facilities.

Wicker’s measure is likely an attempt to appease social conservatives, who have been riled up over the guidance since it was made public. Just Wednesday, the Republican-controlled House Armed Services Personnel Subcommittee held a closed briefing with Pentagon general counsel Jeh Johnson and Navy counsel Paul Oostburg Sanz on the legal rationale that led to the Pentagon guidance.

But the Wicker amendment won’t produce any change because it reiterates the administration’s policy of giving chaplains the option of whether or not to take part in same-sex weddings.

Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said the passage of the amendment into law wouldn’t change anything.

“This amendment does nothing new as it relates to the rights of chaplains,” Sarvis said. “Indeed, the new Senate language is a restatement of the protections and guarantees that have always been there.”

In a statement, Wicker said the amendment would be a way to “protect” chaplains from being involved in same-sex weddings.

“This amendment will allow the chaplains of our armed forces to maintain the freedom of conscience necessary to serve both their nation and their religion without conflict,” Wicker said. “Protections for military chaplains should be guaranteed in any policy changes being implemented.”

But the amendment stands in contrast to a measure in the bill passed by the House, which would have an impact on a chaplain’s ability to conduct weddings.

Language that was inserted by House Armed Services Committee Chair W. Todd Akin (R-Mo.) during committee markup outright prohibits military chaplains or civilian Pentagon employees from assisting with or officiating at a marriage ceremony. The same provision also prohibits the use of military bases for these purposes.

Conferees will have to decide whether to address the issue by agreeing on either the House or Senate language, or by including no language at all related to military chaplains and facilities in the final bill.

Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and other LGBT advocacy groups had lobbied for Article 125's repeal during hearings on the Act by the Senate Armed Services Committee, intensifying their collective efforts after the final passage of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" repeal last September.

Activists have campaigned for the provision to be removed from the UCMJ for several years, arguing that the 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v. Texas that struck down sodomy laws should be held as a reference point for the military.

Reaction from right wing conservatives, particularly the anti-gay family values groups, immediately likened the repeal of the article as giving service members license to have sex with animals.

On the ultra conservative media blog, CNSNews.com, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said the effort to remove sodomy from military law stems from liberal Senate Democrats as well as the President’s support for the real of the "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" policy.

“It’s all about using the military to advance this administration’s radical social agenda,” Perkins told CNSNews.com. “Not only did they overturn Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, but they had another problem, and that is, under military law sodomy is illegal, just as adultery is illegal, so they had to remove that prohibition against sodomy.”

Perkins said removing the bestiality provision may have been intentional -- or just “collateral damage."

“Well, whether it was inadvertent or not, they have also taken out the provision against bestiality,” he said. “So now, under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), there’s nothing there to prosecute bestiality."

Perkins was referring to the current wording of Article 125 of the UCMJ which states:

[...] "(a) Any person subject to this chapter who engages in unnatural carnal copulation with another person of the same or opposite sex or with an animal is guilty of sodomy. Penetration, however slight, is sufficient to complete the offense. (b) Any person found guilty of sodomy shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.”

Former Army Col. Bob Maginnis told the website that according to some military lawyers, bestiality may be prosecutable under another section of the military code of justice – the “catch-all” Article 134 for offenses against “good military order and discipline.”

But don't count on that, he said.

“Soldiers, unfortunately, like it or not, have engaged in this type of behavior in the past. Will they in the future, if they remove this statute? I don’t know," Maginnis said.

The House version of the bill does not contain the Article 125 repeal provision, which must be reconciled in the joint committee of both chambers before the bill goes to the President for his signature.

This week's Marriage News Watch is here:

Following is a transcript of today's report:

December 5th and 10am. That's the deadline for the California Supreme Court to rule in the Prop 8 case. And the good news is that any way they rule is a victory for marriage equality. They could either end the case right here, with Prop 8 being found unconstitutional. Or they could allow the appeal to move forward on the merits, in which case we would prove -- for a second time -- that Prop 8 is unconstitutional.

The ruling could come at any time, but the latest possible date is December 5th. We'll be counting down throughout this episode and during future episodes until we have that decision.

In New Hampshire, the Republican-controlled House Judiciary Committee approved a bill that would end marriage equality, replacing it with severely limited legal protections for LGBT families. Governor John Lynch opposes the measure, and so do most residents. A survey earlier this month shows just 27% support repeal, compared with 50% who are opposed. And 44% say that they're more likely to vote against an anti-gay candidate, compared to just 14% who were more likely to vote for an anti-gay politician.

One weird quirk of the proposed bill is that it wouldn't just apply to LGBTs. It would also allow siblings to form a civil union. The bill is sponsored by Representative David Bates, who so far has avoided explaining his eagerness to facilitate consanguinity.

Meanwhile a growing bi-partisan coalition opposes the measure. Visit StandingUpForNHFamilies.org to learn more about the organization, which includes a former New Hampshire Chief Justice, Vice-Chair of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee, a former New Hampshire Attorney General, local business leaders, politicians, and a wide array of other public figures.

Ohio's stepping up pressure on legislators with a rally planned for this Saturday, November 5th. Equality Ohio is joining forces with a Catholic organization, GetEQUAL, and an equality org from neighboring Kentucky for a rally from 11am to 6pm in Fountain Square in Cincinnati. The action comes on the heels of a recent survey from October showing 62% of voters support some form of legal recognition for same sex couples, with only 34% opposed.

In national news, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold debate on repealing the Defense of Marriage Act on Thursday of this week. The committee is dominated by co-sponsors of the bill, so it's likely to have an easy passage. From there, it moves to the full Senate, where its survival is far less certain.

But the assault on DOMA continues to ramp up on multiple fronts, with the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network filing a lawsuit this week on behalf of soldiers and veterans. Even with the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, gay and lesbian servicemembers are still prohibited from accessing the same spousal benefits that are available to straight colleagues.

And in Brazil this week, the country's Supreme Court ruled in favor of a lesbian couple seeking to have their civil union recognized as a marriage. The long-term effects of this ruling are unclear, since it isn't binding in state courts and may apply exclusively to this one couple, so we'll need to pay close attention to see what the next steps are from Brazilian activists.

That's the news for this week, join us online at AFER.org for the latest on the federal challenge to Proposition 8, and visit MarriageNewsWatch.com for more breaking news headlines. We'll see you next week.

Aubry Sarvis

But the Pentagon announcement also acknowledged that a number of other benefits are restricted by applicable statutes, including the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

“Unfortunately, today’s announcement does nothing to move the ball forward on the issue of providing equal benefits, recognition, and family support for legally married gay and lesbian families," said Aubrey Sarvis, Executive Director of SLDN, in a statement.

"The benefits outlined today were, in fact, available even before the repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ Again, SLDN calls upon Secretary Panetta to confer now all the benefits and recognition he is authorized to extend to gay and lesbian service members and their families under current law.”

SLDN filed a federal lawsuit in U. S. District Court in Boston Thursday on behalf of current and former service members seeking equal recognition, benefits and family support for equal sacrifice and service in the U.S. Armed Forces.

“We are not advocating any special treatment for the families of gay and lesbian service members or veterans, but we want to underscore that all military families should be treated the same when it comes to recognition, benefits and family support,” said Sarvis.

The 14 benefits identified for members to designate whomever they wish as beneficiaries are:

• Service Members Group Life Insurance beneficiary;
• Post Vietnam-era Veterans Assistance Program beneficiary;
• All-volunteer Force Educational Assistance Program – Active Duty Death Benefit beneficiary;
• Death Gratuity beneficiary;
• Final Settlement of Accounts;
• Wounded Warrior Designated Caregiver;
• Thrift Savings Plan beneficiary;
• Survivor Benefit for retirees;
• Casualty Notification;
• Escorts for Dependents of Deceased or Missing;
• Designation of Persons Having Interest in Status of a Missing Member;
• Veterans’ Group Life Insurance beneficiary;
• Person Eligible to Receive Effects of Deceased Persons; and
• Travel and Transportation Allowance: attendance at Yellow Ribbon Reintegration events.

The Defense Department said it is "engaged in a careful and deliberate review of the possibility of revising the eligibility for additional benefits, if legally permitted."

The plaintiffs, each legally married, want the armed services to recognize their families and seek the same family support and benefits for their same-sex spouses that the U.S. Military and Department of Veterans Affairs provide to opposite-sex spouses.

This is the same court that ruled the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional because it interferes with a state’s right to define marriage last year. That decision is being appealed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit.

The 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) bars federal recognition of same-sex marriages performed in states that allow them.

The suit also challenges provisions of federal code regarding spouses that attorneys said bar gay couples from accessing benefits provided by the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Those benefits include military identification cards, access to bases, recreational programs, spousal support groups and burial rights at national cemeteries.

“This case is about one thing, plain and simple. It’s about justice for gay and lesbian service members and their families in our armed forces rendering the same military service, making the same sacrifices, and taking the same risks to keep our nation secure at home and abroad,” said Army Veteran and SLDN Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis.

“These couples are in long term, committed, and legally recognized marriages, and the military should not be forced to turn its back on them because the federal government refuses to recognize their families,” Sarvis said.

“We’ve been serving our country too long, working too hard, and sacrificing too much to see our families denied the same recognition, support and benefits as our straight, married counterparts,” said lead plaintiff, Major Shannon McLaughlin of the Massachusetts National Guard. McLaughlin and her spouse, Casey, are the parents of ten month old twins, Grace and Grant.

Currently, DOMA prohibits the military from recognizing same-sex marriage and, therefore, prevents it from providing vital benefits to legally married spouses including housing, health care, and surviving spouse benefits.

Those inequities were recently spotlighted when Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan of the New Hampshire National Guard -- a plaintiff in the suit -- was forced to seek intervention from elected officials and the Pentagon in order for her spouse, a part-time special education teacher, to be permitted to attend a yellow-ribbon reintegration ceremony following CW2 Morgan’s return from a deployment to Kuwait.

“As plaintiffs, we are fighting to receive the same benefits and opportunities as our married heterosexual counterparts. This discrimination causes undue financial and emotional hardship for our families," said Morgan.

"As a cancer survivor, who has been recently diagnosed with a recurrence, I worry every day that my health may take a turn for the worse, and Karen would be unable to receive the survivor’s benefits to help take care of our daughter. We are only asking for fair and equitable treatment as a recognized family,” Morgan added.

Sarvis pointed out this is not about special rights, as some critics have argued.

“We are not advocating any special treatment for the families of gay and lesbian service members or veterans, but we want to underscore that all military families should be treated the same when it comes to recognition, benefits and family support,” said Sarvis.

Charlie Morgan

In a letter Tuesday letter, Shaheen urged the Department of Defense "in the strongest terms to end a discriminatory policy that bans the same-sex spouses of returning National Guard members from participating in official National Guard family events."

Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan was forbidden by Guard officials from bringing her spouse, Karen Morgan, to a yellow-ribbon event in North Conway this weekend.

Shaheen said the event is part of an official military reintegration program, designed to help returning soldiers and their families deal with the transition back to life in the United States.

New Hampshire Union Leader

Shaheen said the decision to exclude same-sex couples from the event was based on the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and that Morgan was excluded from the event only because she is a lesbian.

"We made the decision as a nation that it was time to allow gay and lesbian soldiers to serve openly in our military," Shaheen said. "It makes no sense to ask them for the same sacrifice we ask of straight soldiers, while denying them the same benefits. We are better than this."

The National Guard, in reversing its ruling, said language allows Guard members to bring any one person of their choosing, regardless of relationship, to a yellow ribbon event.

For the past 11 years, Morgan and her spouse have been in a civil union, and are parents of a 4-year-old daughter.

Morgan, 47, recently returned home from a deployment to Kuwait.

The suit, which SLDN said it plans to file by the end of October, will add to the growing number of federal court challenges to DOMA.

SLDN argues that DOMA "violates the Fifth Amendment right to due process.”

Aubrey Sarvis, Executive Director of SLDN, told the Huffington Post, "That has never been done before," referring to the Fifth Amendment rights issue, "We're looking at all the legal remedies available."

Sarvis said his group is also working to change Title 10 of the U.S. Code, which governs the armed forces and defines marriage as between two individuals of the opposite sex.

While gay military couples are now eligible for "member-designated" benefits such as group life insurance, missing member notification and hospital visitation rights, DOMA keeps health care coverage and housing allowances off limits. Base housing or housing allowances and health insurance can account for as much as 40 percent of a service member's compensation, Sarvis noted, yet those benefits are not available to same-sex married service personnel.

"There is a huge disparity between gay and straight service members who are providing equal service, taking equal risks, making equal sacrifices," Sarvis said. "This inequity should not and cannot stand."

Huffington Post

SLDN's Director of Communications, Zeke Stokes, told LGBTQ Nation on Tuesday that the organization will mirror the successful campaign to repeal the "Don't Ask-Don't Tell" policy by launching a strategic "two-prong approach" with focus on judicial as well as legislative efforts to remedy the disparity in benefits for military same-sex couples.

Stokes indicated that SLDN was in the final stages of preparation to launch the legal effort, and added that the lack of parity for military same-sex couples in regards to benefits further underscores the need to repeal DOMA. He added that SLDN absolutely stands behind the efforts to pass the Respect For Marriage Act by Congress.

Stokes declined to comment if there was a specific time frame for the filing, or if SLDN had a particular federal bench in mind.

According to OutServe, the conference will also offer the LGBT military community "a means of building professional networks, sharing best practices and formulating strategies that help build a stronger military community."

The sold-out conference kicked off Thursday at the New York, New York Hotel and Casino, and is being attended by 215 attendees from all branches of the U.S. military along with veterans and civilian supporters. A spokesperson for the organization said that the registration was capped to make the event manageable.

"Part of the goal of the conference is to recognize the past, and also as an organization plan for the future," said Ty Walrod, a civilian who co-founded OutServe, and served as its spokesman when his friend and co-founder, Air Force 1st Lt. Josh Seefried, used an alias to avoid being discharged under "don't ask, don't tell."

Nathaniel Frank, a historian whose 2009 book, "Unfriendly Fire," argued that banning gays from serving freely hurt U.S. military readiness, said that gay men and lesbians have formed secret social networks going as far back as World War I. Aided by technology, research and the public's increasing indifference to sexual orientation, OutServe is the first such group to be able to take its activities from anonymous to above ground, he said.

"'Don't ask, Don't Tell' obviously required people who in many cases needed support, the support of each other and mutual assistance, to remain in the shadows even to one another," Frank said. "So to have a conference like this, where people can step out of the shadows and come together to discuss the things that are important to being the best soldiers they can be, is historic and is essential and is one of the reasons so many people have been advocating for an end to a policy that requires you to hide."

Associated Press, via The New York Times

In addition to several workshops, one of which was entitled "Scriptures and Homosexuality," there were private meetings scheduled for the heads of the organization's 48 chapters.

"There are issues of leadership and faith and family that are specific to our community and that by addressing, our folks can be better soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and better leaders," said Sue Fulton, an OutServe founding board member, and the first openly gay West Point graduate who was appointed to the Board of Visitors of the U.S. Military Academy by President Barack Obama in July.

OutServe also announced Thursday that Douglas Wilson, the Defense Department's openly gay Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, will be the keynote speaker at the gathering's Saturday night dinner.

Also slated to appear Saturday evening will be Jeff and Lori Wilfahrt of Rosemont, Minn., whose son Cpl. Andrew Wilfahrt, lost his life to an IED in Kandahar, Afghanistan in February of this year. Wilfahrt was openly gay, and serving in an Army unit whose other members were aware that he was gay.

The Wilfahrts will be honored for paying tribute to their son's memory by their campaign of speaking out against the ballot referendum to place an anti-gay marriage constitutional amendment on the 2012 Minnesota ballot.

The conference sponsors included the Central Intelligence Agency, Log Cabin Republicans, Stonewall Democrats of Nevada, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, and LGBT advocacy groups Human Rights Campaign, and the Courage Campaign.