Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Army Recruiters: The Other White Meat


I know, the title of this post does not make too much sense, but hopefully it got you to click on the link.

The following news story is just another bad example of use of common sense:


published Tuesday, March 27, 2007 on Gay.com
A man who posted his resume on the job-seeking Web site CareerBuilder.com became involved in a spiteful e-mail exchange with an Army recruiter who was interested in hiring him before finding out he was gay.

Recruiting Sgt. Marcia Ramode fired off several messages to New Jersey resident Corey Andrew for three days after he told her he was not interested in joining the military because of its
"don't ask, don't tell" policy, the Jersey Journal of Jersey City, N.J., reported Monday.

She told Andrew, who is black, "Go back to Africa and do your gay voodoo limbo tango and wango dance and jump around and prance and run all over the place half naked there."

She also told Andrew, using her military e-mail address, that
being gay is immoral and that he must be "a total idiot and so stupid to presume that you do not know what gender you are."
Andrew fired back, according to the article, criticizing her poor grammar and spelling. He also took a jab at her admitted Native American heritage, writing, "So take that to your next rain dance."

Ramode's actions are under review by the Army Recruiting Command's staff judge advocate.
The Servicemembers Legal Defense Network on Tuesday called for Ramode's dismissal.
"Sgt. Ramode's comments were insulting and inflammatory to all troops now serving in our armed forces," said C. Dixon Osburn, executive director of the group.

"Individuals from all racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds, as well as those who are lesbian, gay and bisexual, serve in our armed forces. This diversity not only reflects the diversity of our nation, but it also strengthens the military might of our armed forces. There is absolutely no place in our military for intolerance and bigotry." (The Advocate)


The situation for homosexuals serving in the US military has changed abit since the days that I entered the military. Come to think of it, I was actually asked if I was gay or not by my recruiter. This was after Clinton's "Don't Ask Don't Tell" went into affect.

By serving 4 years in this homophobic government agency, I know that there is still a long way to go, but imagine my disgust when I read the previous article.

It is sad to say, but I think the more that crazy recruiters like this are exposed to the public, the more that the US will see how much of an insult it is to gay service men and women who have to hide in the closet while voluntarily placing their life on the line for our country.

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