Source: Washington Post, ABC News
A poll released a week before Congress holds its first hearing on the policy in over a decade shows that public attitudes about gays in the military have shifted dramatically since President Bill Clinton unveiled what became his administration's "don't ask, don't tell" policy 15 years ago this weekend.
Three-quarters of Americans now support allowing gays to serve in the military, whether they "tell" or not -- much broader support than existed when the compromise policy was put in place.
In 1993 fewer than half -- 44 percent -- believed out gay men and lesbians should be allowed to serve, rising to 62 percent in 2001 and today's 75 percent.
The new ABC News/Washington Post poll shows that military service by gays is backed by large majorities across most groups, including, perhaps surprisingly, Republicans, conservatives and evangelicals.
There's one exception -- service by gays who've gone public slips to 50 percent among military veterans.
Majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independents alike now believe it is acceptable for openly gay people to serve in the U.S. armed forces.
Shortly after he took office in 1993, Clinton faced strong resistance to his campaign pledge to lift the military's ban on allowing gay people to enlist. At that time, 67 percent of Republicans and 75 percent of conservatives opposed the idea. A majority of independents, 56 percent, and 45 percent of Democrats also opposed changing the policy.
Next Wednesday, the House of Representatives' subcommittee on Military Personnel will hold the first hearing on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) since it was enacted.
Service Members Legal Defense Network (SLDN), a group that supports discharged service members and lobbies for overturning DADT, urges people to contact members of Congress before the hearing.
"'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' is depriving our armed forces of critical specialists at a time we need them most. For example, nearly 60 gay, lesbian, and bisexual Arabic linguists have been discharged even though there's a military-wide shortage of service members with these essential skills," DADT said in a statement this week.
Today, Americans have become more supportive of allowing openly gay men and women to serve in the armed forces. Support from Republicans has doubled over the past 15 years, from 32 to 64 percent. More than eight in 10 Democrats and more than three-quarters of independents now support the idea, as did nearly two-thirds of self-described conservatives.
Poll analysts for ABC News call the change in support for openly gay service members "striking."
Among evangelical Protestants, for instance, 62 percent support service by openly gay members of the military and 69 percent support service by gays who remain silent.
Changing attitudes on the issue parallel broader swings in public views about homosexuality, Washington Post reports. In their recent review of 20 years of polling data, the Pew Research Center reported "a major shift away from highly negative attitudes toward gays and support for punitive actions against gays." In the 2007 Pew data, for example, 28 percent said local school boards should have the right to fire teachers known to be gay; that was down sharply from the 51 percent who said so in 1987.
Across all three periodic Post-ABC surveys on the issue, women have been more apt than men to support gays in the military. Today, more than eight in 10 women support allowing openly gay soldiers, compared with nearly two-thirds of men. Fifteen years ago, half of women supported this stance; nearly two-thirds of men opposed it.
Furthermore, large majorities across age and education categories now support allowing openly gay individuals to serve in the military.
Full article: Acceptance of Gay People in Military Grows Dramatically | Washington Post
Attitudes Change Toward Controversial Policy | ABC News (US)