Rajdeep Singh
Lawyer

Rajdeep Singh

Rajdeep Singh is Director of Law and Policy at The Sikh Coalition.

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Nothing holy about homophobia

Despite public and military support for overturning Don't Ask, Don't Tell, the legislation which bans openly gay service members, political, military and religious leaders cite a variety of objections to changing the law.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) worries that allowing gays to serve openly would impact troop "morale;" Marine Corp Commandant Gen. James Amos says that a policy change may affect "unit cohesion" and "combat effectiveness." Among the religious leaders opposed to overturning Don't Ask, Don't Tell is Catholic Archbishop for the Military Services Timothy J. Broglio, who fears that chaplains would be forced to compromise their principles in accepting "objectively disordered" homosexuality, adding that he "can never condone -even silently -homosexual behavior."


What beliefs are behind banning gays in the military? What's the role of religion in this debate?

There is nothing good about the Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT) policy. Its underlying premise is that homosexuality is so hurtful to the feelings of bigoted soldiers that repealing it will compel them to drop their weapons, experience physical and emotional breakdowns, and lead our military inexorably into a downward spiral of lost morale, in ways that benefit our enemies. And so, DADT requires us to pretend that gays and lesbians do not exist in the U.S. Armed Forces.

This is an insult to our men and women in uniform.

One of the best ways to weaken our enemies is to attack their beliefs. Consider the case of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a known homophobe. His government persecutes gays and lesbians. The Iranian president himself infamously claimed in a 2007 speech at Columbia University that there are no gays and lesbians in Iran. His remarks elicited laughter and ridicule and reinforced an emerging global consensus that Ahmadinejad is a bigot. Ironically, DADT restrains us from exploiting the Iranian leader's homophobia because he agrees with it in principle; in other words, what supporters of the policy have in common with the Iranian president is a willingness to pretend--and perhaps even ensure--that gays and lesbians do not exist.

DADT does not reflect the highest ideals of America. The attitudes that led to its creation are the same ones that were used to justify discrimination on the basis of race and sex in the U.S. Armed Forces. When someone joins our military, the implication is that they are prepared to give their lives for American values--equal opportunity being an important one in this context. We cannot honor such courage and conviction when we tell gay and lesbian soldiers that they are in some sense inferior because of who they are, and that they should pretend to be invisible. Gay and lesbian soldiers deserve gratitude for defending our right to believe what we want, and the least we can do is afford them the same respect that we would want if our lives were also on the line.

Religion itself is discredited as an organizing principle when it is used to justify homophobia and the sputtering political efforts to impede repeal of DADT. According to many religious traditions, all people are endowed with dignity and divinity, while others explicitly require their followers to treat everyone with respect based on love. If we accept that the essence of religion is dignity, divinity, and love, it is hard to imagine how there can be anything holy at all about bigotry and homophobia, which form the core of the DADT policy.

Rajdeep Singh serves as Director of Law and Policy for the Sikh Coalition. The opinions expressed here are his own. He can be reached at rajdeep@sikhcoalition.org.

By Rajdeep Singh  |  November 17, 2010; 3:01 PM ET Save & Share:  Send E-mail   Facebook   Twitter   Digg   Yahoo Buzz   Del.icio.us   StumbleUpon   Technorati  
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An excellent article, here.

The point about a certain few homophobes making the US seem as bigoted and out of touch as Ahmedinejad's comments are particularly well-taken.

Even among the On Faith panel, it's pretty obvious that these bigoted defenses and clingings to DADT and whatever refuted premises they base it on simply aren't the opinion of theologians that have *anything* sensible about the matter, or consistent with the proceedings of a pluralistic and non-theocratic nation such as America is so proud of being supposed to be.

Posted by: APaganplace | November 20, 2010 10:58 AM
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@georgedixon1

Are you a learned biologist or zoologist? Can you site studies or peer reviewed papers reporting on the complete absence of homosexual behavior in the animal kingdom? If so, where is this evidence? Surely a web link, at least, to something like the American Academy of Science.

No?

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/07/0722_040722_gayanimal.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_animals_displaying_homosexual_behavior

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=bisexual-species

Try reading books instead of burning them.

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Posted by: itkonlyyou382 | November 18, 2010 8:07 PM
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This is, of course, one of the many absurd hypocrisies of the religious right in the United States. They rail against Islam, yet they march in lockstep with the most fundamentalist, reactionary Muslim leaders on this. They stand in solidarity with Ahmadinejad and Mullah Omar and other of their fellow reactionaries on not just this issue but whether women should have true freedom (sovereignty over their own bodies), and whether science or religion should be used to guide public policy.

The values of conservative "Christians" in this country are much closer to those of rightwing Islam than they are to those of the liberal western countries. I only wish we could ship them all over to Afghanistan or Iran so that both they and we would be much happier.

Posted by: B2O2 | November 18, 2010 7:43 PM
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1) The left cares not at all about access to the military they publicly despise

2) "Gays" in the military is to undercut the institution
...(just like Iraq was the wrong war and Afghanistan was the 'right' war to the left when Bush was in office, today Afghanistan is less loved by the left.....)

3) Homosexuality is as biologically normal as pedophilia or necrophilia.

4) Homosexuality was rightly classed as a mental illness until a 3 to 2 vote by the governing body of American psychiatry in the early 1970's at a convention where no papers on related topics were presented...a "global warming" bit of political science...

Posted by: georgedixon1 | November 18, 2010 10:30 AM
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Great article

Posted by: fairness3 | November 18, 2010 10:00 AM
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Posted by: woodstock-41 | November 17, 2010 7:01 PM
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Ek ONKr!

Sikh's are nice people. Yet

It is the ISHLAMi's Regimes who gave Both HINDU and SiKHdu a BAD NAME. And The-Timing was not Good. So live Up to your own preachings for 'Patience & Understanding' let alone perseverance. But

But United-States of AMERICA is NO British-Empire nor the French-Empires of WW2 & WW1 who hired SIK-ARMY's, Regiments, platoons etc who helped them expand the IMPERIAL agenda. So Things today are NOt like The Sikh high Days or glory as holy days of Yesterday. Please See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikh

EXCERPT: "In the last two world wars 83,005 turban wearing Sikh soldiers were killed and 109,045 were wounded. They all died or were wounded for the freedom of Britain ... British people are highly indebted and obliged to Sikhs for a long time. I know that within this century we needed their help twice [in two world wars] and they did help us very well."

After the "Muhammad{Cartoon" debacle [Bomb that looks like your TURBINE] caused Islam to Organizationally? rise up against KAFIR Nations aka Infidels lalala. SO;

Brother OBAMA & ADMIN was in His/Their rights (as Chief Executive or USA) to cancel the Visit. Note: People cancel visits all the time. So it was not Anti-Religion nor was there any 'Insult' Intended. Only SIGN OF THE TIME. Maybe Next Time Sikh Ummah will be honored. Expect the Unexpected [secret visit] in Future, aye?

Please understand "Counselor" that today, In AMERICA & Elsewhere that a TERRORIST can Pack-up a-Turbin with Hight-Explosives, pretending, in PUBLIC, like HE is a Peaceful-SiKH & suddenly blow selfves-up ET AL, or a BURKA-Babe! So Please

Keep in Mind that many ISHLAMI's today, here and abroad, are Hiding Behind or Blending-in or Disguised as Hindu/INDIAN's. Even Using Hindu/Sikh-Names instead of Ishlami names. see:

http://www.irandefence.net/showthread.php?t=30690

EXCERPT: "... Members of India's large Muslim minority are often adopting Hindu names and dress styles in an attempt to avoid widespread prejudice that keeps them from housing and jobs ..."
___

Something ON: "... IRANian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a known homophobe ..."

iMPORTANTO: Fact; IRAN's Mr. "A-MAD-MAN-of-Jihadd" and his [gondoo] shiat Ayatollah's "ELDERS OF ALTAQIYAH" ALL are known "P-E-D-O-P-H-I-L-E-S" who are All Secretly-married to 9-Year Old Girls, as-Wives!???

Note: For KAFIR' Nations, it is Perfectly Normal to have or feel a little-bit or alot of ISLMOPHOBIA. WE're in a "COLD-WAR" where the "Ishlami-Creep/Conspiracy" or Ishlami-Spread" with the SINO-Commy Chinko Blessings behind some Agenda is REAL. And that WE[i] KAFIR's art justly Worried about such DELUSIONAL & mis-Idealogized via their PRE-Apocalyptic LEADERSHiPS?. Note: SIHK's are NO Angels Either.

So, Good SiKH [Kafir Ummah] People, like the Hindi Kafir-People, are once again the Victims of the ISLAMIC-Psych (none Kafir Ummah). YE SEE, in iSLAM, THERE IS A "DiSTINCTION"!

SHANTI//AHIMSA, PEACE//SHALOM, MIR/PAZ....

Posted by: woodstock-41 | November 17, 2010 6:15 PM
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