Every country has laws. Ever since the beginning of time, laws have been put into effect mainly to keep order. They ensure the safety of the land and those who inhabit it. Without theses normal, everyday laws people would just be allowed to run amuck, doing as they please. Unfortunately, as good as most laws are in keeping the country safe, there are still plenty of outlandish laws. Some are just stupid laws, which nobody really knows the point of. For instance, in California, it is actually illegal to ride your bicycle in a swimming pool.
These are usually just stupid little facts that people like to joke around about. Some, on the other hand, are laws that violate a man’s human rights. These laws were not put into place to intentionally restrict human rights, but some way or another has come to affect them. One law is that is a prime example of this violating is not actually a citizen law, but somewhat of a military precaution.
I am talking about the “don’t ask don’t tell” policy. I feel as if this law is a direct human rights violation and needs to become void.
In case you do not know, the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy” is a U. S. military regulation that states that any person who demonstrates homosexuality or any type of homosexual act will not be allowed to serve in the military. They claim that open homosexuality will “create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.
” In short, they don’t want homosexuals to openly display their sexuality because it will make our military look weak and unstable.
Put into action in 1993 by former President Bill Clinton, the act was originally put into effect so that all men and woman, regardless of sexuality, could serve their country in the military. Before this law was thought up, no homosexuals were allowed to serve. On the surface, this may look like a good thing, giving everyone the equal chance to serve their country in combat, but if you look deeper into it, and take into account the emotional distress that closet case homosexuals have to deal with on a daily basis, it turns it into a cruel and unfair restriction.
It is pretty clear cut on why this law is a violation of human rights. It takes away a person’s ability to live freely and happily. Restricting someone from serving for their country just due to their sexuality is wrong. Some people look at military service as a very commendable act and it takes much honor and bravery to sign up for something that serious. If someone is willing to risk their life to protect our countries well being they should be given the opportunity too, regardless of their sexual orientation.
Although their ability to join the armed forces is allowed, I still feel it’s unfair to make them bottle their sexuality inside. It seems to me that most homosexuals have to deal with this identity crisis at an early age, not knowing whether or not to “come out” or to keep it a secret. Forcing these people who have already gained the courage to free themselves of that stress and come out to go back to hiding the way they feel could be detrimental to their physiological health.
They have dealt with the feeling of not belonging their entire life, and it seems that the military is just pushing these uneasy feelings that could very easily lead to horrible outcomes, such as suicide. The truth of the matter is, the military shouldn’t be focused on this type of issue. A person’s sexuality isn’t going to determine whether they are either fit or unfit to serve the army. Its things like strength, intelligence, and heart that make a fine soldier, not the sex that they are attracted to.
They need to focus more on those attributes to get the type of military that this country needs. As you can see, this law is both unethical and disgraceful. These people didn’t choose their own sexuality, but they did choose to put their lives on the line in order to protect and serve this country, so the last thing we should be doing is punishing them for the way they feel. They should be honored just as any other soldier would be. You see kids killing themselves left and right over their sexuality and people wonder why. It’s because of the bias that still exists today towards homosexuals.
We need to realize that they are people just like us that have feelings and emotions, and forcing someone to bottle up their feelings and emotions never has a good outcome. Even though people still feel uncomfortable about making homosexuality normal, we need to start making advancements for the future because things can’t stay the way they are, and what better place to start than the military. Maybe if they show the world that homosexuality is nothing but an individual preference, the rest of us will follow, thus making the world a better place.
Dumb International Laws. (2019, Dec 05). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/paper-on-essay-dumb-laws/