NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — Military academy students say that 10 years after the end of “don’t ask, don’t tell," there is wide acceptance of gays, lesbians and bisexuals, but that work remains. There are occasional homophobic or ignorant comments, including online postings, which can be hurtful. Transgender students still face much resistance. In its history, the military dismissed more than 100,000 service members due to their sexual or gender identities. That included 14,000 during the “don’t ask, don’t tell" era. Active military personnel and veterans who served then are remembering a darker time when they feared having their sexual and gender identities revealed.
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U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Kelli Normoyle, Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Sanibel, stands for a photograph on the deck of the vessel, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021, at a shipyard, in North Kingstown, R.I. Normoyle was one of two cadets who formally started the process to create the CGA Spectrum Diversity Council just a few months after the law known as "don't ask, don't tell" was repealed on Sept. 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
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