•  Campaign Videos (September 2011) « Obama for America
  

[Music] Woman [Darrah]: On September 11th, on that morning, I had gone down to the Pentagon for a meeting.  The meeting adjourned at 9:30 and I was at the bus stop when the plan hit the Pentagon.  As it turned out the space I was in seven minutes earlier was completely destroyed and seven of my co-workers were killed. 

I realize that if I had been killed my partner would have quite literally been the last to know because I was unable to put her name in any of my emergency contact information.

The events of September 11th made us realize that we really were making a much bigger sacrifice because of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.  Living under Don't Ask, Don't Tell quite literally she didn't exist.

Man [Johnson]: Living under Don't Ask, Don't Tell is something that you can't put into words really.  I mean you give up so much of yourself in order to pursue a job that you love [cricket SFX].  You're giving up relationships, you're willing to lie to people.  It's a landmine; it's a field full of landmines.

Woman [Darrah]: For example when the admiral would call me to his office, this little voice in the back would always say, gee, I hope [identified on screen: Captain Joan Darrah, United States Navy (Ret.)], I hope that somehow I haven't been outed, and that he's calling me in to tell me that my career is over.

Man [Johnson]: The wording of it is very misleading because it makes people think that under the policy you can be gay, lesbian or bisexual [identified on screen: Jeremy Johnson, Petty Officer First Class United States Navy (Discharged 2007)] and serve, but just not talk about it.  But it's a lot more than that.

Woman [Vasquez]: Don't Ask, Don't Tell also meant I would lead a very empty life [identified on screen: Stacy Vasquez, Sergeant First Class United States Army (Discharged 2003)] by myself to be able to follow the law.

Woman [Darrah]: You basically end up living two lives, which is awful.

Man [Laich]: My last assignment was as the commanding general of the 94th Regional Readiness Command.  And the principal function of the 94th was to prepare soldiers to deploy to Iraq and Afghanistan.  In my professional judgment as an old [identified on screen: Major General Dennis Laich, United States Army (Ret.)] straight bald guy who spent 35 years in the military, Don't Ask, Don't Tell actually takes away from miltary readiness.  You have critical, very, very difficult to fill military occupation specialties where we discharged fully qualified, fully trained combat veterans who are exactly what the military wanted simply because we had a Don't Ask, Don't Tell law on the books which most of the military thought didn't make sense.

Woman [Vasquez]: I was the top recruiter in the Army.  Throughout the years I had been in the military I had been promoted seven times.  Actually as I was being discharged from the Army for Don't Ask, Don't Tell, my commander was very forthright in his view that I should still be promoted ahead of my peers, and that I would be an asset to the Army even though I was gay.

Man [Johnson]: As I progressed in my career, I moved relatively quickly, and I kind of had to weigh whether or not living up to the Navy's core values of honor, courage and commitment and living under Don't Ask, Don't Tell were compatible.  I wrote a letter to my commanding officer letting him know what the situation was and was discharged.

Obama [clip]: We are not a nation that says Don't Ask, Don't Tell.  We are a nation that says out of many we are one.  [applause starts and continues]  We are a nation that welcomes the service of every patriot; we are a nation that believes that all men and women are created equal.  Those are the ideals that generations have fought for, those are the ideals that we uphold today, and now it is my honor to sign this bill into law.

Woman [Darrah]: The military, the country, will be stronger without Don't Ask, Don't Tell.  the best way to have the best military is to be able to hire the brightest, most capable people.

Man [Laich]: We have a whole host of organizations and people who've worked tirelessly since 1993 to repeal this failed law.

Woman [Darrah]: A tremendous number of people have done so much from the President of the United States to the lowliest junior enlisted person that's somehow managing to survive under Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

Man [Johnson]: From the moment that he began campaigning, President Obama made it clear that if he was president he would work to try and get Don't Ask, Don't Tell repealed.

Man [Laich]: The fact of the matter is that he delivered.  Don't Ask, Don't Tell on 20 September 2011 will no longer be part of our military fabric.

Obama [clip]: This is done. [applause].

Man [Johnson]: As soon as Don't Ask, Don't Tell is officiall off the books, I'm going back to finish what I started.

Woman [Vasquez]: I'm going back in because I want to keep giving back to my country.

Man [Laich]: The soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines who want to return to the military deserve a handshake and a thank you from every American because they are showing courage and integrity and a loyalty to country and their service that's almost unfathomable, and I would salute every one of them and be humbled to stand in the same formation with them.

Woman [Vasquez]: I think that the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell says that our country is truly a country where freedom is respected.

Man [Laich]: It speaks well of America when we act based on fact and justice and fairness and equality to the benefit of the country as a whole.

Woman [Darrah]: We have an American flag out front that has been flying and will continue to fly, but on the 20th of September it's going to fly just a little bit higher.

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Notes:

Copyright © 2011 Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action.