Today the same-sex spouses of military service members become eligible to receive a range of federal benefits, thanks to a Department of Defense policy change that was announced last month implementing the U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down a key provision of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Starting today, spousal and family benefits will…
WASHINGTON – Pvt. Chelsea E. Manning announced today that she is female and wishes to begin hormone treatment therapy. In a statement read on NBC’s Today show, Thursday, Manning said, “As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me,” Manning said in the statement. “I am…
Military judge Col. Denise Lind today sentenced Bradley Manning to 35 years in military prison – out of a possible 90 – for leaking reams of classified information to Wikileaks. He has already served more than three years in pre-trial detention, including 11 months in conditions described by the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture as…
Today, the Department of Defense (DOD) announced its plan to extend benefits to same-sex spouses of uniformed service members and Department of Defense civilian employees. The announcement stated: After a review of the department’s benefit policies following the Supreme Court’s ruling that Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional, and in…
Thanks to the United States Supreme Court’s ruling on the marriage cases last week, we would be justified in letting out a sigh of relief that LGBT equality is finally becoming a reality and this month’s Pride celebration is the perfect opportunity to celebrate our recent successes. Among the most wonderful new additions to our…
Announcement from Robert P. Palmer, Col, USAFR, director of Public Affairs, Headquarters, Air Force Reserve Command (HQ AFRC/PA) through San Diego LGBT Pride: Lt Gen Jackson has approved Air Force Reservists to wear their service dress uniform if they choose to participate in a special military contingent leading the 39th Annual San Diego Pride Parade this…
Everyone knows that the Supreme Court struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). That means married same-sex couples now qualify for the 1,100+ federal benefits that were previously denied to them. We can’t go through them all, so here are my top 15 benefits for married same-sex couples: IRA and Roth…
Today, the board of directors of OutServe/SLDN issued a statement through Outservemag.com explaining that “the Board and staff are in the process of transforming the organization from primarily a legal services organization into a membership services and advocacy organization.” Board Co-Chair Josh Seefried went on to apologize for the events of the last few days stating…
SAN DIEGO – For the third year in a row, San Diego LGBT Pride is inviting active duty and veteran servicemembers to participate in a special military contingent leading the 39th annual Pride parade Saturday, July 13 at 11 a.m. San Diego Pride made in history in 2011 by hosting the first active duty military…
Retired Senior Chief Kristin Beck’s book Warrior Princess was recently released about her 20 years in the Navy and the beginning of her transition from male to female. I won’t presume I can editorialize about or retell her personal story found in the pages of her book better than others have – I’m certainly not…
