Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)-but the legacy of DADT has made it difficult for many to find jobs. In an important step forward, the Biden administration in 2021 made it possible for LGBTQ+ veterans with less-than-honorable discharges to receive many benefits from the U.S. Since the repeal of DADT, service members who were discharged because of their sexual orientation have had the opportunity to appeal for an honorable discharge-but the immense difficulty in accessing the necessary records and the potential need for legal representation means that fewer than 500 veterans have made the request.Ī less-than-honorable discharge as a result of DADT can effectively bar former service members from accessing necessary resources, including financial support.
It is estimated that more than 14,000 gay and lesbian individuals were subject to less-than-honorable discharges as a result of this policy. For LGBTQ+ individuals serving during this time, DADT placed an immense toll on both mental and physical health-from the need to hide their true selves and the constant fear of discovery to the inability to disclose their sexual orientation to military health care providers. Until 2011, the controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, established in 1994, banned gay, lesbian, and bisexual (LGB) individuals from openly serving in the military. History and legacy of discriminatory policies