Posted on by Randy Slovacek

LGBTQ Veterans Sue To Update ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ Discharges

Several LGBTQ veterans who received less than honorable discharges due to their sexual orientation during the U.S. military's "don't ask don't tell" policy are suing the Defense Department.

Several LGBTQ veterans who received less than honorable discharges due to their sexual orientation during the U.S. military’s “don’t ask don’t tell” policy are suing the Defense Department.

The group says in its lawsuit that their constitutional rights were violated when the government failed to update them to honorable discharges when the discriminatory policy was repealed in 2010.

From The Hill:

Veterans who were discharged under “don’t ask don’t tell” for their actual or perceived sexual orientation often received discharge paperwork that identifies their sexuality as the reason for their discharge, according to Tuesday’s lawsuit.

The discharge papers, known as DD214s, also burden veterans “with discharge rankings below honorable” and bar them from reenlisting.

“Discharge paperwork bearing these markers carries the legacy of the anti-LGBTQ+ policies that the military has now disavowed,” the lawsuit says.

The plaintiffs are not seeking monetary damages and instead are asking DOD to remove all indicators of sexual orientation from theirs and other LGBTQ veterans’ DD214s.

Those still carrying the less than honorable discharges today say they are deprived of the full spectrum of benefits including VA loan programs, college tuition assistance, health care and some jobs.

An estimated 14,000 service members were discharged because of their actual or perceived sexual orientation during the almost 18 years the military’s “don’t ask don’t tell” policy was in place.

A Pentagon spokesperson told CBS News there is “an existing process consisting of a short two-page application for veterans seeking a change to their discharge.”