Ten years ago Monday (September 20), the U.S. military's homophobic "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy was ended, ushering in a decade of open military service for LGBTQ enlistees and officers.
While implementation of the rule over the 18 years it was in effect upended the careers and lives of roughly 14,000 service members, its repeal was a watershed moment in the federal fight for LGBTQ rights."I think one thing I reflected on a lot during my actual seven years in service following repeal, immediately a generation no longer had any concept of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' I had to remind myself that was kind of the goal," said gay veteran Joseph C.