Ex-Soldiers Allege Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Discrimination Persists

Veterans who were involuntarily discharged because of their sexual orientation argued Friday the US Department of Defense should be forced to remove the discriminatory language on their discharge papers.

The soldiers argued the government’s disclosure of their sexual orientation on the discharge papers, known as DD-214s, violates their constitutional right to privacy and close off state and federal benefits available to other veterans, including the right to reenlist.

“Those papers strike a blow to these plaintiffs every single day,” plaintiffs’ attorney Elizabeth Kristen told Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero of the US District Court for the Northern District of California. The ...