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of Gay Arabic Translators Shortage of Qualified Linguists Imperils Bush War on Terrorists Servicemembers Legal Defense Network Defending 7 Specialists SLDN
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) has assisted in the cases of seven Arabic speakers trained at DLI, including Private First Class Patricia Ramirez. Ramirez recently acknowledged her sexual orientation in a letter to her command. The DLI command originally informed Ramirez in writing that, despite her sexual orientation, she was being retained in the Army and should continue to report for duty. Within weeks of that announcement, however, SLDN learned that DLI officials had apparently reopened Ramirez's case and were illegally questioning service members on base to obtain information about homosexual conduct. Additional service members at DLI were reportedly threatened with disciplinary action if they did not cooperate with the command's renewed investigation of Ramirez. Shortly thereafter, Ramirez was informed that, despite DLI's earlier promises to allow her career to continue, she was being fired under the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. Ramirez indicated to her command that, if the Army would allow openly lesbian, gay and bisexual military personnel to serve without prejudice, she would be happy to continue serving. "The truth is that I would like very much like to complete language training and serve my country," Ramirez wrote. "The command at DLI should have closed this case when it told PFC Ramirez to continue with her career," said SLDN Executive Director C. Dixon Osburn. "Brave, patriotic Americans should not be fired in the name of federally sanctioned discrimination. That is blatantly un-American." Officials within the intelligence communities have spoken publicly about the impact a shortage of Arabic linguists has had on the nation's fight against terrorism. A recent report from the House of Representatives noted that, "the GAO reported a significant shortfall in linguists. After the 9-11 attacks, this shortfall actually increased slightly. A long-term linguist and analyst hiring strategy is required."
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Washington, D.C.-- Despite a shortage of qualified Arabic linguists in the intelligence and defense fields, the Army has fired a significant number of language specialists trained at the military's Defense Language Institute (DLI) in Monterey, California, because they are gay.
1965: Members of the Mattachine Society of
Washington protest the anti-gay policies of the Pentagon.
GayToday editor Jack Nichols (without
sunglasses) stands on the right