+1 JMC0759
I think people really overthink this issue, but than again I am a 51 yo white woman.
My Godmother is a lesbian...huge no-no in the Catholic world. She officially came out in the 80's when paranoia of AIDS was at its height due to ignorance. She was also a HS teacher. Nobody made a deal of it. Why? Because it had no impact on how she performed her job. Her private life was her private life.
Personally, I still kind of chuckle at her making it official...a 45 yo woman that has never been married and lives with a female roommate was not hard to put 2 +2 together.
~ I too had a teacher come out in the early 80's. Nobody cared when he announced it publicly either.
No parent was demanding them to leave their profession because they might "convert" their child. Nobody thought OMG my kid somehow may get AIDS because they shared the water fountain at school.
We have several friends in the AF that are gay. Like Gen. Mattis, Bullet never cared who they slept with...all he cared about was that they got enough sleep to perform the mission!
There will always be ignorant people in this world.
haleym,
This is meant in no offense, but your post kind of made me chuckle.
A comparison: after Brown V. Board of Education, did every American's opinion of desegregation/people of different skin color suddenly change? Were African Americans suddenly welcomed into white schools with open arms? From what I recall, the answer is a resounding no
You are at USAFA currently, I am not sure what you could
recall since your parents were probably not yet a twinkle in your grandparents eyes, let alone you, which brings me back to life now regarding homosexuality in the AF.
DADT occurred 20+ years ago, you were in diapers. Bullet was serving ADAF. Just like with my Godmother nobody cared about it as long as it did not impact their ability to do their job and followed orders. Nobody went in the squadron went on a witch hunt to figure out if they were gay. Nobody did not invite them to squadron parties. They were part of our AF family.
Yes, there were ignorant people that made hay out of this, but like Mike stated nobody digs into your personal life unless you flaunt it.
~ Gay Pride parade in uniform posted on your FB page is an issue, but so would be going to a Pro-Life march.
Which I believe was his point when he stated this:
You are in complete control over whether being gay, straight, republican, democrat, Christian, or atheist will become an issue or not.
OBTW, I could even compare this issue to another one. I am assuming you are a female. What was the 1st yr that USAFA accepted women? Look how far we have come? Look at Jeannie Flynn Leavitt as an example. Use Nikki (Fifi) Malachowski too.
~ USAFA accepted women for the class of 1976 if I am correct. By 1989 Jeannie was the 1st female fighter pilot. She was also the 1st female Wing King for a fighter unit, and that was almost a decade ago. Fifi was the 1st Thunderbird.
Just saying there will be some that say they got it because they had 2xs and not an xy gene. However, nobody flying with them cared whatsoever their genetic code was, it was all about handling the stick and their ability to lead.
I never served, just a wife that followed her DH around the world and hung out with them for 21+ yrs and now a Mom of an O3 pilot. Never did I EVER hear any negative comments or slight to them because they were gay. Any negative comment was tied to flaunting it publicly in a way that was not within regs. I never cared at all, gay straight, bi, as long as you make sure as Bullet's wingman you got him back home safe I couldn't care!