Equality Florida's GSA Network members protest DADT

Members of Equality Florida's GSA Network took to the streets in protest of the discriminatory Don't Ask Don't Tell Policy. Students from 11 area high schools showed up to protest and urge the Weston City Council to pass a resolution against Don't Ask Don't Tell.

-------

Armed with a busy Weston intersection as their soapbox, dozens of high school students last month waved the rainbow flags to boost momentum for gay rights in the U.S. Military.

Teenagers from nearby Cypress Bay High and other Gay Straight Alliances wielded picket signs adorned with messages like "Uncle Sam Wears a Rainbow Hat," all part of an effort to raise awareness for the repeal of the armed forces' "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy.

But one protester, Ryan Terrell, 17, said he wasn't stopping with protests. As Cypress Bay's Gay Straight Alliance president, Terrell plans to pitch a resolution during the Nov. 2 Weston city commission meeting asking officials to support replacing "Don't Ask Don't Tell" with the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 2009, a recent House bill currently under debate in Congress.

"Why should someone's sexuality deter you from serving in the armed forces?" the Weston resident said. "It's currently illegal to serve in the military as a gay person. But if someone files a complaint, the military can invade a serviceman's privacy; go into their personal life and any of their relationships."

If passed by Weston government, Terrell argues, the measure would piggyback off similar resolutions mailed to Florida's Congressional Delegation by Wilton Manors and Oakland Park. He figures if the delegation supports ENDA, they would also push for the passage of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, a bill banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

See the full Sun Sentinel article here.