SLDN Releases Post-DADT Guide for Servicemembers
Throughout the life of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Servicemembers Legal Defense Network published the “Survival Guide” — a booklet to help guide servicemembers living under DADT.
Today, in a move that shows the changed landscape in the military — and within the LGBT organizations that have pushed for DADT repeal — SLDN is releasing “Freedom to Serve: The Definitive Guide to LGBT Military Service” — a booklet to help guide servicemembers after DADT.
Among the four focus areas of SLDN, per the guide, are:
- Representing and defending LGBT service members through free and direct legal services
- Advocating for equality of benefits for legally married same-sex service members
- Assisting veterans to correct or upgrade their discharge paperwork
- Litigating in the courts, when necessary, to advance full LGBT equality in America’s military
The booklet addresses a wide range of topics. The “Tips for Serving” section discusses issues from “being publicly out” to pornography. Other sections address “The Uniform Code of Military Justice,” “Benefits and Family Programs,” “Transgender Service,” “Service Members Discharged Under DADT or Prior Policies” and more. At the end of the guide are links to more than 75 resources for military servicemembers, from organizations like Servicemembers United and OutServe to the National Center for Transgender Equality and Metropolitan Community Churches.
In a news release announcing the guide — and SLDN’s re-launch of its website to reflect the changed aims — SLDN executive director Aubrey Sarvis said, “As has been our core mission since the founding of SLDN, we stand ready to represent and defend LGBT service members whenever the need arises, and our new online site reflects that ongoing commitment, while providing the most up-to-date and relevant information possible for those serving our country and those who support them.”
DOWNLOAD the guide: SLDN-FreedomtoServe.pdf
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
