Our Year in Review – April ‘11-‘12
The loathsome “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” military policy was finally abolished in September, nine months after President Obama signed legislation that would allow openly gay personnel to serve in the armed forces. Some gay and lesbian service members couldn’t wait to say ‘sayonara’ to DADT’s draconian restrictions. In December, Fire Controlman 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta was the first to kiss her fiancée, Fire Controlman 3rd Class Citlalic Snell, in a U.S. Navy homecoming ceremony in Virginia Beach, VA. In Navy tradition, one sailor is chosen by raffle to be the first off the ship to kiss a loved one—and Gaeta’s and Snell’s was the first same-sex smooch in military history.
A kiss is still a kiss—but what a kiss it was! When a female naval officer smooched her fiancee during a military homecoming ritual, it indelibly marked the true and final end to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” The victories of the past year seemed to come fast and furious: New York finally legalizing same-sex marriage along with Maryland and Washington State; Chaz Bono busting a move as Dancing with the Stars’ first transgender contestant; the snowballing Occupy Wall Street movement demanding justice for the hardworking 99 percent. Even great tragedy, and the still-raw memories of America’s worst terrorist attack, failed to slow the rekindling of our optimism. (And if you want more proof, see GO’s landmark Tenth Anniversary issue this September!)
TRAGEDY IN SANFORD
Mass protests erupted over the tragic murder of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, a Sanford, Fla. student, in March. Self-appointed community watch patrolman George Zimmerman allegedly shot the unarmed teen—who had stepped out to buy Skittles and iced tea at a local store—on the evening of February 26 after seeing him pulling the hood of his sweatshirt over his head and acting suspiciously, according to Zimmerman’s 911 call. Zimmerman disobeyed the 911 operator’s instructions not to engage Martin, and then became involved in a scuffle, resulting in Martin’s death. Though the details of the chain of events is still forthcoming, the incident sparked outrage from civil rights groups. The racial dimension of the incident (Martin was African-American; Zimmerman is of Latino descent), the fact that Zimmerman claimed self-defense under Florida’s controversial “stand your ground” law, and the initial lack of arrest ignited tense debate. (Zimmerman was eventually charged with second-degree murder.) A coalition of LGBT organizations issued an open letter declaring the case “a national call to action:” “Trayvon’s killing is a wakeup call to the enduring cancer of racism and racial profiling. The pain his family continues to endure transcends communities and unites us all. Every person, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, must be able to walk the streets without fear for their safety.”
