Don’t Ask, Don’t Count: Pentagon Underreports Discharges
Servicemembers United, having just won a Freedom of Information Act request, says the military has not been counting National Guard or Reserve veterans who were discharged under the military's anti-gay policy.
, having just won a Freedom of Information Act request, says the military has not been counting National Guard or Reserve veterans who were discharged under the military’s anti-gay policy.
Your support matters…Servicemembers United:
The commonly accepted annual “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” discharge statistic combines the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Defense for each of its active component branches with the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Homeland Security for the Coast Guard. However, the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Freedom of Information Office has confirmed to Servicemembers United on three separate occasions in late 2009 and early 2010 that the internal source of their annual “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” discharge numbers is the Defense Manpower Data Center, and that Defense Manpower Data Center statistics do not include discharges from the National Guard or the Reserves.
Last month, Servicemembers United released the total fiscal year 2009 “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” discharge numbers reported by the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security. Those numbers were 428 and 15 respectively, bringing the “official” 17-year discharge numbers up to 13,425. These newly released numbers now bring the 17-year total number of discharges to at least 14,055.
Independent journalism is under threat and overshadowed by heavily funded mainstream media.
You can help level the playing field. Become a member.
Your tax-deductible contribution keeps us digging beneath the headlines to give you thought-provoking, investigative reporting and analysis that unearths what's really happening- without compromise.
Give today to support our courageous, independent journalists.
DEIB
Dogwhistles about "King-flu" harmed racial group with the greatest unmet mental health need.
Courts & Law
Sotomayor's dissent should be read by every American and taught in colleges and universities.
Editorial Cartoons
Many of those accosted by police during the tactic's surge in New York, 80% of whom were black or Latino, remain psychologically affected.
Though diversity is a driving ethos of this year's event in Los Angeles, the art world is still deeply invested in sidelining people of color.
The Democratic presidential candidate attributes the financial crisis to discriminatory housing practice as opposed to predatory lending.
You need to be a supporter to comment.
There are currently no responses to this article.
Be the first to respond.