Gay Soldier Honoured By British Military Magazine

A gay soldier who has served in Iraq has been made cover star of the July 2009 edition of Soldier magazine. Trooper James Wharton, 22, talks of the overwhelmingly positive experience hes had as an out gay soldier in the British army.

Less than a decade ago it was illegal to be gay and serve in the UK armed forces. It wasnt until 2000, following a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights that the ban on gay men and women serving, and openly declaring their sexuality, was lifted.

Today, the British army works hard to embrace sexual diversity; recruiting via gay publications and offering same sex couples similar benefits to partnered heterosexual personnel.

I came out to the Army before I told my parents, so that says a lot for the Armed Forces Tpr Wharton says during the interview where he speaks about the full support gay and lesbian army personnel now receive. The 22 year old, about to be promoted to Lance Corporal, met his current partner during the 2008 London Gay Pride march - the first time members of the Armed Forces were allowed to march at the event in military uniform.

In a stark contrast, Americas Dont Ask Dont Tell policy continues to prohibit gay U.S. military personnel from revealing their sexual orientation. I still cant get my head around the US policy says Tpr Wharton who has served his country for six years, including a tour of Iraq in 2007 Luckily I dont have to deal with it, but clearly there will be gay soldiers in the US Army who are not being themselves they arent allowed to be.

Gay Soldier Honoured By British Military Magazine 2015-03-12T17:10:00+07:00 Rating: 4.5 Diposkan Oleh: Dikantp