The group said discharges under the policy were 73 percent higher than they had been in 1993. But after the beating death of a gay soldier at Fort Campbell, Ky., Defense Secretary William Cohen ordered sensitivity training and renewed emphasis on "don't ask, don't tell." Last week a gay-advocacy group, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said reported anti-gay incidents more than doubled and violations of the "don't ask" policy rose 30 percent in 1999.
The Pentagon says the policy is working and that tolerance toward gays is generally the rule in all four service branches. "Don't ask, don't tell" is now under attack by gay political activists and may yet be scrapped. But it is emblematic of the difficulties faced by gay men and women who serve in the military under the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Their story, told pseudonymously at their request, is not a tragedy-both young men have simply returned to civilian life. Reggie and Billy were having a love affair-a clandestine romance whose disclosure, in a moment of panic and confusion, destroyed their military careers. "They were great soldiers and part of the family." "There was no question about their talent and devotion to duty," their former company commander says. They were inseparable buddies who spent much of their off-duty time camping, mountain climbing and inline skating together. Assigned to the First Battalion of the 508th Airborne, Reggie and Billy were stationed in Vicenza, in the foothills of the Italian Alps.
Billy was dark-haired and wiry, a standout soldier who had been decorated for his service in Bosnia and who was on the fast track for promotion to sergeant. Reggie was tall and blond, a natural athlete and an expert marksman who was fluent in five languages.