Draft Dodging during Vietnam

[Ringo]

From Homosexuals in the Military

The ban on homosexuals serving in the military, was originally instituted in 1942. Though some of the reasons that were used to justify it at the time have been debunked since-that homosexual service members in sensitive positions could be blackmailed, for instance (“Gays and the Military” 54)-the policy was largely an extension of the military’s long-standing policy against homosexual acts. At the time, the prevailing attitude was that homosexuality was a medical/psychiatric condition, and thus the military sought to align itself with this school of thought. Rather than just continuing to punish service members for individual acts of sodomy, the military took what was thought to be a kinder position-excluding those people who were inclined to commit such acts in the first place, thus avoiding stiffer penalties (including prison sentences) for actually committing them.

As society and the military came to be more enlightened about the nature of homosexuality, a redefinition of the policy became necessary. In 1982, the policy was redefined to state that “a homosexual (or a lesbian) in the armed forces seriously impairs the ability of the military services to maintain discipline, good order and morale.’” (Quoted in “Out of the Locker” 26)

Another article by Randy Shilts contains far too much to quote: What’s Fair in Love and War?

I was draft eligible during Vietnam and can tell you that it was certainly widely believed that claiming to be homosexual would get you out, although I don’t know anyone who tried that. It was also rumored that the military had tired of that dodge and if you tried it, you might not like the unit you wound up in. I found nothing to support that. The military certainly did prosecute for sodomy during WW II and Korea.

[MsRobyn]

*Originally posted by Spavined Gelding *
**While it may well be true that the armed forces didn’t much care whether a draftee was a homosexual or not during Vietnam, once they got in they were frequently court martialed for sodomy or discharged under the administrative regulations for unsuitability or unfitness. In other words, the service took them but threw them out with a mark on their record. As long as a young soldier was discreet there would be no punitive action, if not, all hell broke lose. At one post where I was stationed there was a constant run of sodomy prosecutions from the stockade, where there was little privacy and even less discretion, and lesbian scandals in the WAC barracks at eighteen-month intervals **

The difference is that sodomy is against the Uniform Code of Military Justice, so it is a prosecutable offense.

Robin

[ismecdb]

Back in college I had noted civil rights leader Julian Bond for a professor on that subject, and he told us that when he had to show up for induction, he was deemed morally unfit, presumably on the basis of his active involvement with the movement.

[tomndebb]

See! Arlo was right.

[Mr.Frink]

*Originally posted by beatle *
** The military certainly did prosecute for sodomy during WW II and Korea. **

I always figured that’s what the “Klinger” character represented in MASH. That explains his dressing up as a woman all the time? Sure the show claimed he was trying to get a Section 8 dismissal; but wasn’t it really all about him trying to get booted for being homosexual?