VA Gives Guidance for Same-Sex Marriage Benefits

I have good news to report about LGBT identified veterans on our campuses.

On June 20, 2014, the Veterans Affairs (VA) Administration published its first official guidance for same-sex married couples on the benefits and services to which they are entitled under current laws and regulations.

Importantly, all offices within the VA will now aim to apply the same level of scrutiny to all Veterans' marriages, regardless of whether it is a same-sex or opposite-sex marriage, and process claims and applications involving same-sex marriage in the same manner that VA processes claims based on opposite-sex marriage. Veterans can learn more about VA's guidance regarding same-sex marriages here or reach out to a VA Call Center at 1-800-827-1000.

This may seem like a tiny step forward, but it represents decades of dedicated work and advocacy and a giant leap forward for civil society. I am celebrating this announcement because it matters to our students, to the professionals in student affairs who support them, and because it matters to me.

In July 2010, I was serving as the Executive Director of Soulforce when asked to join the Service Member’s Legal Defense Network (SLDN) leadership roundtable discussion about the impact of anti-LGBT religious and political leadership on the evolution of equality within the armed forces. I use the phrase “evolution of equality” because the process of ensuring dignity for all persons is an iterative process that requires deep intentionality and culture change.

I deepened my understanding of contested issues about gender roles and expectations, coercion and hierarchy, power and privilege when I was working with the Equality Riders. We visited over 150 private, religious college campuses in an attempt to eliminate policies and practices that were exclusive and harmful to LGBT students and faculty. We also visited ROTC installations and the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. We were the “heat on the street” or the steady drumbeat on the ground with thousands of activists and advocates who worked tirelessly to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT).

We celebrated on September 20, 2011, when DADT ended after US President Barack Obama issued his directive that changes were to occur in the US military, including specific expectations of how changes would be put in place to ensure justice and respect for Constitutional and privacy issues for persons based on sexual orientation.

There is still much work to be done. Transgender persons are still excluded from service due to a clause in the military’s medical policy that says they have gender identity disorder and are therefore unfit for service. Standards of Medical Fitness classifies this as "administratively unfit rather than medically unfit."

I was very encouraged to hear Defense Secretary Hagel’s statement on May 11, 2014, that the military should “continually review” its prohibition on transgender people in the military and called into question when the Pentagon’s ban may eventually be lifted. I have seen these public assertions evolve into public policy over time.

The VA announcement made me think about ACPA and our core values of equity and inclusion and development of the whole student.

What assertions about human dignity, respect, and equal treatment are we making on our campuses? What do we need to continually review? About LGBT lives? About veteran lives? Students in ROTC? And more.

Those of us who work in higher education know that some of our campuses have struggled through the evolutionary phase of obtaining equal rights for LGBT persons. In recent years, some ROTC units left public colleges rather than admit openly gay students. Some schools still do not have safe spaces established for LGBT concerns. Some students have simply abandoned their dreams and stayed in the closet.

Wyatt George, an 18-year-old transgender student at Kennesaw State University, wanted to join the Air Force ROTC and eventually the Air Force.

“When I found out about [the Air Force’s] policies regarding transgender issues,” George said, “it was like, that’s not really a possibility for me. You have to go through various physical examinations, and if they find anything has been altered it’s pretty much grounds for dishonorable discharge.”

George went on to say that should that policy be changed in the future, he would still be interested in joining the Air Force.

The Department of Defense report on DADT repeal implementation pays little attention to how colleges should deal with the DADT repeal and its impact on ROTC programs and cadets at civilian colleges. Although ROTC programs were mentioned briefly in parts of the report, there were no clear implementation steps for college administrators to follow. Leaders at universities were left to create their own implementation plans to ensure a smooth a transition on campus post-repeal.

This is a great time to check in on our progress on those plans. This seems particularly important in view of the recent attention to sexual assault and violence on campuses. The military reform of its sexual assault intervention policies has resulted in a 50 percent improvement in reporting. Will we be able to say the same in 10 years on our campuses? Research clearly indicates that those environments where sexual assault and violence are highest are the same settings where bullying and harassment of LGBT persons occur most frequently.

Our friends and allies at Campus Pride published a solid list of recommendations for schools regarding post-DADT repeal campus climate. These make great sense as part of a voluntary process regarding other types of issues on campuses involving safety.

Campus Pride Recommendations

Assess

Launch a LGBTQ campus assessment to help determine what issues might need to be addressed for the campus community (faculty, staff, and students). The national expert is Dr. Susan Rankin, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Education Policy Studies and Senior Research Associate at the Center for the Study of Higher Education at The Pennsylvania State University. College leaders may want to reach out to Dr. Rankin, who co-authored Campus Pride’s landmark 2010 State of Higher Education for LGBT People, to discuss how best to launch a campus LGBTQ assessment.

Train

Just as the military is struggling with how its chaplain corps will counsel openly gay soldiers and what new training they may need, so too may campus counselors need training to develop new skills to counsel openly gay ROTC cadets.

Review

Depending upon an institution’s current policies regulating housing (e.g., same-sex halls), facility use (which authorized clubs, e.g., the new ROTC LGBTQ Club, may use them), and judicial rules (e.g., will infractions have heightened penalties for hate-related actions based on sexual orientation?), it may be a good idea for campus lawyers and student affairs professionals to review pertinent policies that may be impacted by the DADT repeal. Or, it may simply be time to reconsider policies like the institution’s anti-discrimination policy and, if it does not include LGBTQ categories, consider revising it.

Talking Points

Developing a set of talking points with the help of the military leaders on campus, student government leaders, staff, faculty, and those from the LGBTQ community will help foster engaged discussion on campus and likely will raise questions and issues not yet considered by campus leadership. Some (parents, administrators) may wonder how the campus will meet the needs of its LGBTQ students (ROTC cadets and others).

Survey

One of the best ways to determine what help students may need is to ask them via open focus groups and anonymous surveys. Campus leaders can easily launch a 10-question survey of military cadets on campus using SurveyMonkey or the institutional research office (if an institution is fortunate enough to have one). By assuming that the campus may have closeted ROTC cadets on campus and asking them about their social, emotional, and mental needs, a campus may avoid unnecessary and/or harmful situations in the future.

Involve

Faculty represent the greatest wealth of knowledge on any campus and many may have expertise in areas that do not appear on their curriculum vitae. Ask faculty members about their knowledge on issues ranging from the LGBTQ community to the military and find ways to leverage that skill and talent. This can be done simply. An email from the Provost asking “What are your thoughts about what our campus could do to leverage faculty talent to respond to the military’s DADT repeal?” will probably produce ideas from people who simply have never been asked. It is likely that some faculty are researching these issues from social and civil rights perspectives.

Revisit

If your campus does not currently have an LGBTQ center or office on campus, this might be a prime time to revisit that need and consider opening one to help meet the needs of all students, faculty, and staff—not just the gay and lesbian military cadets.

Town Halls

Foster campus communication with campus leaders (student, staff, and faculty) as well as military/ROTC leadership by hosting town halls on campus where anyone can ask questions.

Reconsider

Many institutions do not have ROTC on campus because of DADT. Others simply do not see ROTC as a “match” for their particular environment. Perhaps with the repeal of DADT, institutions that do not currently have ROTC on campus may want to reconsider that decision given the many benefits ROTC brings to a campus.

Meet

Host a leadership summit where campus leaders can meet with the president and dean of students about the impacts of repeal on campus) in general and for ROTC cadets) is a great first step. Even if a campus does not have an ROTC unit, organizing a summit or meeting is a positive way to discuss the many issues that this repeal may mean for our military, our campuses, and our society.

LEARN MORE

Efforts to create safe learning, living and working environments for LGBTQ students, faculty and staff aren’t just concerns for universities with ROTC programs. Campus Pride’s 2010 State of Higher Education for LGBT People outlines several in-depth best-practice solutions and guidelines for programming and policy changes meant to foster inclusion and equality on campuses. Learn more at www.campuspride.org/research/.

Information for this blog is used by permission of Outserve-SLDN and cited from CampusPrideBlog January 5, 2011.

ABOUT AMERICAN VETERANS FOR EQUAL RIGHTS: AVER is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, chapter-based Veterans Service Organization of active, reserve, and veteran service members dedicated to full and equal rights and equitable treatment for all present and former members of the U.S. Armed Forces and their families. For more information visit www.aver.us.

ABOUT MILITARY PARTNERS AND FAMILIES COALITION: MPFC is the leading national organization founded by partners of active duty service members focused on support, education, resource, and advocacy for partners, children, and families of LGBT service members. MPFC is a private non-profit, non-partisan organization based in Washington, D.C. For more information visit www.milpfc.org.

ABOUT OUTSERVE-SLDN: OutServe-SLDN is the heir to the legacy of providing legal services to service members and veterans since 1993. From representing over 12,000 service members during the era of DADT, leading the fight to repeal DADT, through winning the federal lawsuit, McLaughlin v. Hagel, that provided benefits to same sex partners of military members, OutServe-SLDN has been on the frontlines for over 20 years. For more information, visit www.outserve-sldn.org.

*(persons who identify as transgender are not covered under the Directive), http://www.archives.soulforce.org/2010/07/07/executive-director-to-join-...