Over 800 Veterans Discharged Under ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Receive Honorable Discharges

A U.S. flag is pictured on a soldier's uniform at the United States Army military training base in Grafenwoehr, southern Germany on March 11, 2022.

The Pentagon announced on Tuesday that over 800 military personnel have had their service records upgraded to honorable discharges after being discharged from the military under the former “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

This is the latest development in the ongoing efforts to rectify past discrimination against LGBTQ service members.

Article 125 of the 1951 Uniform Code of Military Justice criminalized consensual gay sex. In 1993, former President Bill Clinton amended the military’s policy to “don’t ask, don’t tell,” allowing LGBTQ troops to serve in the armed forces if they didn’t reveal their sexual orientation.

This policy was repealed in 2011, when Congress permitted LGBTQ individuals to openly serve in the military. In 2013, the 1951 UCMJ code was revised to apply only to nonconsensual gay sex.

President Joe Biden announced in June that he was issuing pardons to service members convicted under repealed military policies.

Under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” thousands of service members were still discharged without an honorable discharge, meaning they missed out on military benefits such as education benefits and could face challenges in securing jobs or loans.

Last year, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered a review of cases of former service members who might have been affected by the policy.

The Pentagon estimates that around 13,500 service members were discharged from military service under “don’t ask, don’t tell.” With the review and upgrades of the over 800 troops announced on Tuesday, the Pentagon stated that about 96% of the 13,500 personnel affected by the policy now have received an honorable discharge.

Not all of the 13,500 cases required review — some of these personnel either did not serve long enough to qualify for benefits, were released with an honorable discharge at the time, had their discharges upgraded through other means, or did not qualify for an upgrade due to other violations.

“We will continue to honor the service and the sacrifice of all our troops — including the brave Americans who raised their hands to serve but were turned away because of whom they love. We will continue to strive to do right by every American patriot who has honorably served their country,” Austin said in a statement.