OCTOBER 1, 1993

GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE 3

Judge threatens Aspin with contempt in Meinhold case

by Michael White

Los Angeles-A federal judge who ruled that the Navy's gay ban was unconstitutional has ordered Secretary of Defense Les Aspin and other officials to appear in court to explain why the ban still is in effect.

U.S. District Judge Terry J. Hatter Jr. said September 22 the officials must show cause "why you should not be held in contempt." They were ordered to appear Sept. 30 or send someone to represent them.

Army Maj. Jeff Lovell, a Department of Defense spokesman at the Pentagon, said officials had not seen Hatter's order and could not comment on it.

In March, Hatter ruled the Navy's ban on gays was unconstitutional. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the government's request for an emergency stay of the ruling. The ruling was in response to a lawsuit challenging the ban that was filed by Keith Meinhold, a petty officer at Moffett Field Naval Air Station who was honorably discharged last year after revealing on national television that he is gay.

"I think they have a very tough row to hoe because the obvious intention of the judge's order was to end the practice by the Department of Defense of banning gays and lesbi-

ans," said Meinhold's attorney, John McGuire.

Meinhold filed documents last week claiming the Pentagon has not complied with Hatter's March order and would continue discriminatory treatment under a new policy scheduled to be implemented next month.

The new policy, called "don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue," states that gays who don't publicly disclose their sexual orientation are not to be penalized for it and their superiors are not to ask them about it. Homosexual conduct itself would still be prohibited.

The policy was the result of a compromise between Congress, the military and President Clinton, after Clinton campaigned on the promise to repeal the military's ban on gays.

In his order Wednesday, Hatter accused the Navy of "continuing disparate treatment" of Meinhold.

Meinhold was reinstated to his position as a petty officer and sonar technician at Moffett on the temporary order by Hatter.

In his lawsuit, Meinhold contends his superiors knew of his sexual orientation for years and tolerated it until his public state-

ment.

House sides with Senate on military gay ban

The U.S. House of Representatives voted September 28 to set into federal law an antigay military policy, nearly duplicating the 50-year old Defense Department (DoD) policy. This codification of the status of gays and lesbians in the military, put forward in amendments by Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., and Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga., is part of the 1994 DoD authorization bill that President Clinton is expected to sign.

The House voted on an amendment offered by Rep. Marty Meehan, D-Mass., to strike the Nunn-Skelton codification amendment. This amendment, which was identical to one offered in the Senate by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., was defeated in a 169-264 vote. Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., offered an amendment to reinstate asking the sexual orientation of those entering the military, but that was defeated in a 144291 vote. Finally the House voted 302-133 in favor of the Skelton amendment, which will make the anti-gay policy a federal law rather than a DoD directive.

The amendment, which the Senate accepted in a 63-33 vote on September 9, states that Congress has the constitutional

right to make rules for the military; that "persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline;" and that the secretary of defense in the future can ask recruits to state their sexual orientation.

Key issues of the president's existing compromise policy are lost to the legislation, including evenhanded enforcement of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for both heterosexual and gay service personnel; and the prohibition of witch hunts.

Peri Jude Radecic, who takes over as executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force on November 1, said, "The White House completely acquiesced on this, allowing supporters of the ban to carry the day. With White House support, the Meehan and Boxer amendments might have passed."

The NGLTF and other gay activist organizations are now shifting their energies to the courts, where there are at least a dozen challenges to the military policy in its various stages.

Mississippi march is calm start for new task force

Ocean Springs, Miss.—About 500 gay and lesbian supporters strode through this city's downtown on September 18 before a moderate crowd in a spirited, but peaceful march.

Police officials and event organizers, cautious that violence might break out after strong public opposition, were pleased with the orderly crowd.

"Everyone has been kind, nice and cooperative," said Police Chief Carolyn Frayser. "The organization has worked real well with us."

About 300 people lined the sidewalks on

Washington Avenue, viewing the parade behind a heavy police guard and yellow tape.

The only open protest came from a D'Iberville church group, which distributed tracts and quietly held signs, asking the gay people to repent.

Leaders of the newly-organized Mississippi Gulf Coast Chapter of Mississippi Gay-Lesbian Task Force had estimated that 65 support organizations would be represented and possibly 1,000 people would march.

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