No ROTC credit: a policy as old as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Toward the end of his Jan. 27 State of the Union address, U.S. President Barack Obama drew attention to the controversial "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that in the 1990s resulted in the loss of credit for ROTC students at AU.

"This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are," Obama said referring to the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. "It's the right thing to do."

The Clinton administration officially instated the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy in 1993 as an attempt at a compromise that would allow homosexuals to serve in the military, permitting that they did not openly admit their sexuality or engage in any behaviors of a sexual or intimate nature with another person of the same sex. It prohibited investigations of sexual orientation as well as harassment of homosexuals, but also permitted the discharge of any persons who were open with their sexual orientation.

In October 1992, AU's Board of Trustees decided to remove academic credit from the ROTC program, effective 1997, in protest of "Don't Ask Don't Tell."

Gene Bernstein, vice-chairman of the Board of Trustees at the time, was quoted in the Nov. 4, 1992 issue of the Fiat Lux supporting AU's decision.

"It was a unanimous recommendation of the [ad hoc] committee to withhold credit from ROTC," Bernstein said. "We are not against the ROTC program. Many people within the trustees accept the program. We just can't accept their discriminatory policies."

AU students can still enroll into ROTC, but they cannot receive recognized credit toward their degrees.

According to AU Admissions policies, "students are permitted to enroll in the ROTC program at St. Bonaventure University, in cooperation with the Seneca Battalion, and military science courses through this program are entered on a student's transcript but do not count towards the completion of that student’s degree."

Obama addressed the issue only briefly, among other concerns about American civil liberties, but the comment has spurred a large response from the press, interest groups and individual citizens.

AU Professor of History Dr. Vicki Eaklor has written about the history of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," as well as the history of AU's response, in her book "Queer America."

Eaklor is a prominent voice for gay rights activism and education on the AU campus. Due to her interest in gender and sexuality in the U.S. and her extensive study in this field, she reacted to Obama’s statement with a bit of skepticism.

"I'll believe it when I see it," Eaklor said.

The University policy exists as a result of the discrimination determined to be inherent in the military. If Obama's administration is successful in its efforts to repeal this legislation, AU would have the option to reconsider its policy and potentially honor credits earned through the ROTC program.

Whether or not this would occur is uncertain, but a change in the national policy might allow the University to change its own without compromising the values it has historically supported.

The president's comments are available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/, along with a section explaining the positions and goals of the administration on several major issues.