US Navy Rejects USNA Gay Alumni Group

(Annapolis, Maryland) 32 graduates of the Naval Academy at Annapolis have been rebuffed in their bid to launch the first official gay and lesbian alumni chapter of any U.S. service academy.

The governing board of the Naval Academy Alumni Association on Friday unanimously rejected the proposal. In an official statement from the association, the board of trustees said the application was denied because it was based too specifically on a special interest, its membership would be too exclusive, and it wasn't centered on a geographical area.

The 32 graduates were brought together by Jeff Petrie, a 1989 Naval Academy graduate. Petrie says the group wanted to be called USNA Out. None in the group is still in the service. While he was organizing, Petrie told us that he hoped the alumni chapter would allow former officers to mentor gay midshipmen still bound by Don't ask, Don't tell. (story)

Petrie says the Naval Academy has fostered a "disapproving and damaging environment for gay and lesbian midshipmen for decades.''

"We don't have the power to change that,'' he said. "But we do have the power to make things a little easier.''

Petrie said the group will continue to hold unofficial meetings but he said that they have not yet decided whether to reapply. Or, they could join with the Service Academy Gay and Lesbian Alumni Association (SAGALA), an 150-member alumni association representing all branches of the service, but isn't officially sanctioned by any of the military academies. Many of its members are anonymous.

"I know that there are people who are part of the board of trustees who don't have open minds toward recognizing gays and lesbians," said Petrie. "I think as time passes, those feelings will fade away and we'll eventually be accepted."

The rejection sends a message to gay men and women in the military that they are not considered equal, said Aaron Belkin, director of the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

"It's a signal that the military is still on the wrong side of history, and that they are continuing to refuse to recognize gay sailors who risked their lives for their country," Belkin said.

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