It's official: 'Don't ask, don't tell' repealed

(12-23) 04:00 PST Washington - --

Jubilant gay-rights advocates from San Francisco to Washington celebrated a milestone Wednesday as President Obama signed legislation that declares an end to the nation's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gay and lesbian members of the military.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, who led House passage of the repeal legislation last week, stood behind the president as he enacted one of the most significant civil rights laws in two decades.

Several service members who had been discharged under the 17-year-old policy, including Army Lt. Dan Choi of San Diego, attended the ceremony, as did retired Navy Cmdr. Zoe Dunning of San Francisco, a lesbian who had opposed the policy since its inception.

"This closes the door on a fundamental unfairness in our country," said Pelosi, a San Francisco Democrat who will become House minority leader when the GOP takes control in January. "Anyone who wishes to serve, secure and defend this country should be welcomed, judged by their abilities and honored for their sacrifice."

Pelosi praised lawmakers from both parties who backed the repeal and led an emotional audience in singing "God Bless America."

Swift implementation

Obama, who promised during his 2008 presidential campaign to repeal the policy, said he hopes discharged gay and lesbian service members will seek to re-enlist once the military determines that ending "don't ask" will not hurt troop readiness, a process that some have predicted could take a year. Obama pledged Wednesday to move quickly through the process.

"I have spoken to every one of the service chiefs, and they are all committed to implementing this change swiftly and efficiently," the president said. "We are not going to drag our feet."

For California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, repeal marks the final chapter in their opposition to the policy that President Bill Clinton signed in 1993. Later that year, Boxer offered an amendment to strike down the ban, but it garnered just 33 votes.

"Today our country is taking a historic step forward for civil rights and full equality for all," Boxer said in a statement. "The repeal of this unjust and discriminatory policy will make our military and our nation stronger."

Dunning, who became one of the first service members to challenge the law when she came out in 1993, stood next to Obama and beamed as he signed the bill.

'Couldn't be more proud'

"I couldn't be more proud to be representing all of the tens of thousands of service members who have been impacted by this policy," said Dunning, who cried with joy Saturday in San Francisco after the Senate passed the repeal bill with bipartisan support.

"It was important to me to represent them well, and I hope I did," Dunning said.

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who is openly gay, framed the repeal in a larger context of the gay legislative agenda that he and other members of Congress support.

"We still want to do something about marriage," he said. "I think the most realistic thing would be to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act, which would end discrimination" against same-sex couples who seek legal marriage.

Historic step

Many of the civil rights groups that worked to gain support for the "don't ask, don't tell" repeal effort praised Wednesday's signing as a historic step for the country.

"The reversal of this policy should serve as a message that discrimination has no place in our laws," said American Civil Liberties Union legislative director Laura Murphy.

"The law now must be implemented by the Department of Defense to ensure that no more service members are unfairly discharged," she added. "The sooner the law is implemented, the sooner our gay and lesbian service members can begin serving their country with honesty and dignity."

Choi, who was discharged in June and applied in October for re-enlistment, was so happy Wednesday that he exclaimed, "I want to get married."

He said Obama's signing of the repeal bill was "poignant, not only for my personal struggle, but for all of us. When we go to war, we don't fight just for apple pie and sentiment, we fight for each other, and that's what we did today."

E-mail Andrew Aylward at andrew@hearstdc.com.

This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle