Defense of Marriage Act
Defense of Marriage Act
Bill Clinton despite all his greatness signed the bill for The Defense of Marriage Act which was signed by Bill Clinton is perhaps the greatest adversary to gay rights today. He also enacted Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell which is also another issue in the field of gay rights today.
The Defense of Marriage Act is a s title of federal law which was passed in September of 1996 has two effects. Firstly, The Defense of Marriage Act states that “no state need treat a relationship between persons of the same sex a marriage, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state.” Secondly, The Defense of Marriage Act also states “the Federal Government may not treat same sex relationships as marriages for any purpose, even if concluded or recognized by one of the states.” The bill was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton. While The Defense of Marriage Act does not prohibit states from allowing gay marriages, it does not obligate states to recognize gay marriages from other states. Currently, The Defense of Marriage Act still stands as a law in the United States, however amidst of gay marriage rights movement; conservative groups are proposing the Federal Marriage Amendment to The Defense of Marriage Act which would create a federal definition of marriage as “the union of a man and a woman,” which would forbid states from issuing same sex marriage licenses. Critics of The Defense of Marriage Act argue that “the law is unconstitutional in that Congress over-reached its authority under the Full Faith and Credit Clause, the law illegally discriminates and violates the Equal Protection Clause, and the law violates the fundamental right to marriage (including same-sex marriage) under the due process clause.” While the current administration under Obama supports civil unions instead of gay marriage they have expressed support in repealing The Defense of Marriage Act. The Defense of Marriage Act is still an on going issue, because may states have completely accepted it or defined marriage in their state as between a man and a woman.
Don’t As Don’t Tell
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is a common term for the policy regarding homosexuality in the U.S. military mandated by federal law. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell prohibits anyone who “demonstrate(s) as propensity of intent to engage in homosexual acts” from serving in the armed forces of the United States because it “would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.” Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell also forbids any homosexual or bisexual person from disclosing her or her sexual orientation or from speaking about any homosexual relationships while serving in the U.S. army. Respectively, superiors should not initiate investigation of army personnel in the absence of prohibited behaviors. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was signed in 1993 by President Clinton and was implemented as a compromise with legislature which opposed a complete repeal of the prior ban on gays in the military. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has received a fair amount
of criticism, especially in recent times as former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, John Shalikashvili and former Senator and Secretary of Defense, William Cohen both spoke out against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. They both stated that if gays and lesbians served in the military, it would not be detrimental to the efficacy of the armed forcers. Furthermore, it must be known that it was Congress and not the military that enacted Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Since Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has received so much criticism, a bill was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2007 to amend Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell or title 10, with a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is also a financial liability because since 1994-2003 the United States military has spent $95.4 million in recruiting costs and $95.1 million for training replacement for the close to 10,000 troops that were discharged. Due to the criticism, it has received as well as the new administration, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell will soon be repealed.