OutServe, an association of active LGBT military service members, will hold the first annual OutServe Armed Forces Leadership Summit this fall in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The summit meeting, which will take place October 13-16 at the New York-New York Hotel and Casino, is intended to give LGBT military personnel a forum within which to discuss the impending repeal of DADT and related issues of military readiness and mutual respect. The event will also create an opportunity for attendees to network and share ideas and strategies that will contribute to a stronger, equality-oriented military communities.
Guest speakers, panels and workshops are among the features planned for the Las Vegas summit thus far, and proposed topics and themes include strength and diversity, military reactions to LGBT personnel, and resource options for service members and their families.
Many prominent organizations (including the Log Cabin Republicans, the Courage Campaign, Amazon and HRC) have already offered to sponsor the event.
JD Smith, OutServe’s pseudonymously-named active-duty co-director, explained that the association’s members “believe diversity is a force multiplier.” Smith hopes that the inaugural OutServe summit will help leverage LGBT inclusion for the benefit of the armed forces and military preparedness and build an environment where mutual respect becomes a bond between gay and straight service members.
The OutServe Armed Forces Leadership Summit is open to both active and veteran military personnel, as well as any interested civil servants, civilians and foreign military allies.
