We live in a world where being apart of the LGBT is completely normal. However, members of the LGBT community still face discrimination in the military. These men and women (regardless of their sexual orientation) have made a promise to “serve and protect our nation.” In 1994, the Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1994 (Pub.L. 103-160) which enabled this policy.
For nearly 17 years, openly gay men and lesbians in our military have been silenced. Over the last couple of months an “Anti-DADT” movement has been sweeping across the nation. President Barack Obama along with Democratic members of Congress and even Lady Gaga asked for this policy to go!
On September 21, 2010, 56 Senator rejected change and voted against S.3454 (http://bit.ly/cFlECR) . In order to break the filibuster and invoke cloture 60 votes were needed to proceed. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011 (S.3454) contained both the DADT repeal amendments and the DREAM act. Joining the Republicans in their filibuster efforts were Democratic Senators Mark Pryor and Blanche Lincoln, both from Arkansas. According to Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) this is the first time that the Senate has filibustered a defense authorization bill.
So what happens now?
During the vote, Senate Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) voted against the bill (a procedural tactic). This enables him to recover the bill at another time. More than likely, S.3454 will be brought up after the midterm elections or better known as “Lame Duck Session.”
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