By Sara Rogers
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With 12 years of public schooling under my belt, I have a certain 31-word oath permanently etched into my brain. Turned toward the flag with right hand over my heart, I have mindlessly recited the Pledge of Allegiance well over 2,000 times in my life. Without much thought, I obediently stood next to my peers in honor of the United States. This year, however, I feel differently.

It is difficult for me to salute a country that falsely asserts itself as providing “liberty and justice for all.”

As of last month, that phrase is clearly invalid. On Sept. 21, the Senate failed to pass the Defense Authorization Bill, which included a repeal to the outdated “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. The law, signed in November 1993, requires the discharge of all openly homosexual servicemen and women in the military.

Since 1997, the first year the Pentagon recorded data, the policy has led to the release of over 11,000 service members. Activists groups, estimating from 1993 to the present, set the number at around 14,000. So in the past 17 years, 14,000 men and women, ready and willing to defend the United States, became veterans unwillingly because of outright bigotry. I struggle to find the “liberty and justice” in this practice.

Any American citizen, man or woman, should be allowed to serve and protect the country without discrimination or persecution based on sexual orientation. How homosexuality firmly relates to effective service is apparently beyond me. As a journalist, I am challenged to analyze every source or bit of information for relevance. This ultimately leads me to question the pertinence of the policy.

If estimates by The Williams Institute, a legal group focused on the advancement of sexual orientation law and policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, are correct, then approximately 13,000 homosexual soldiers are currently serving. For every one of these troops discharged, the military spends an additional $22,000 to $43,000 for a replacement. By practicing such an ignorant policy, America is increasing its already insurmountable debt. Again, I fail to see the validation for such a costly, literally and figuratively, practice.

The original press release by the Department of Defense, published after the policy’s enactment, stated, “sexual orientation is considered a personal and private matter…” If that is so, I fail to see why it was ever regarded as such a prominent issue. In a country that prides itself on tolerance, there is certainly room for improvement.

As a progressive nation, we must repeal this outdated policy. Today, 25 countries allow openly homosexual citizens to serve, including Canada, Britain and Israel. Britain’s Ministry of Defense reported to the New York Times in 2007, saying they had not experienced major incidents of “harassment, discord, blackmail or bullying, nor any erosion of unit cohesion or military effectiveness” since allowing homosexuals to serve in the armed forces in 2000.

In fact, according to a 2010 report by the Palm Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara, allowing openly homosexual soldiers may actually improve efficiency by limiting tension and secrecy. After consulting the armed forces of various countries, the Palm Center reported “increased focus on behavior and mission rather than identity and difference” as well as “an enhanced respect for privacy” and “an improved command climate.” The evidence for lifting the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy is overwhelming.

Only the United States and Turkey have retained bans on homosexuals in their military. Surely, the “leaders of the free world” should follow suit and adapt to a changing culture. In fact, as a nation built upon acceptance, haven’t we fallen behind?

This year, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) will encourage citizens to participate in the “Honor Every Veteran” campaign in order to promote acknowledgement of those veterans discharged through “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

I hope everyone, especially members of my generation, will choose to follow the lead of the SLDN. All those who put their lives of on the line to defend Americans and American freedom deserve recognition on Veterans Day. If America is the free and just country it claims to be, acceptance would not be an option; it would be a standard.

The Bill of Rights grants equal protection to all citizens, male or female. Black or white. Heterosexual or homosexual. So on Veteran’s Day, when I stand in recognition of all those who defended this country, I will do so in gratitude for all veterans. With my hand over my heart, I will recite that familiar pledge in hopes that soon that last line will reign true.

Maybe, just maybe, I will believe that America can be a place full of “liberty and justice for all.”