Don't Ask, Don't Hate

"Our thoughts are unseen hands shaping the people we meet.  

Whatever we truly think them to be, that's what they'll become for us."

- Richard Cowper -

Had we listened to Hitler, believing all Jewish individuals to be subhuman, we would have soon began to see only inferiority in our Jewish neighbors. An entire religious and ethnic group may have been wiped out. And had we blindly followed the procession of white robes, as members carried their torches through the streets, we would have soon felt nothing but disdain at the sight of a darker complexion. Perhaps we would have never witnessed the inauguration of a biracial president. Many Americans are able to fight these prejudices and the discrimination and hate crimes they often produce, so I was nothing short of appalled when I read letters written by local citizens regarding the recent repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

For the past seventeen years, thousands of LBGT Americans have been discharged from the U.S. Military simply for being true to who they are. Others have remained silent - some even dying for a nation that was built on (and always thought to be supported by) a foundation of freedom and equality. So when I opened the opinion section of the newspaper, I could not believe the phrases that jumped out at me: social and cultural experimentation, moral catastrophe, God's law rejected. The authors whose words I have mentioned were writing in to complain of the DADT repeal and express their negative attitudes toward our legislation. It seems that some of us are losing sleep over an end to a form of institutional discrimination.

Yes, you heard me correctly. They are upset over an end to discrimination.

A former member of the Air Force described potential discomfort at "having someone's lifestyle shoved in my face." He added, "Why must we identify a person's lifestyle in order to serve in the military?"

Well, sir, we don't have to identity lifestyle. I'm not sure if you realize this, but removing the "Don't Ask" policy does not lead to the instatement of a "Do Ask" one. By terminating DADT, the government is simply giving individuals the right to choose whether or not they wish to discuss the details of their lifestyle. I'm also confident that such a choice would not result in fellow men and women in uniform parading their sexuality before an audience.

Another man claimed that the legislation was "not in the public interest" and that the intent of the repeal "is to enforce a societal acceptance of homosexual, bisexual, and lesbian sexual relationships."

I, for one, would like to point out the paradoxical nature of this statement. If following our basic constitutional principles by protecting freedom is not in the public interest, what exactly is? And why, oh, why must everything be so black and white? Not opposing a particular lifestyle does not necessarily mean that you are promoting said lifestyle or placing it on a pedestal above others.

The issue at hand is not one of morality, though many people are taking positions and readying themselves for a cosmic debate. I don't see this political move as a jab at religious institutions; I view it as the restoration of a justice that never should have crumbled in the first place. While I do understand the concern with protecting the LGBT military community from violence and harassment, I refuse to endorse a policy that will take away a person's job - a person's opportunity to support his family and to fight for something he believes in - solely due to his sexual orientation.

One's personal stance on sexuality plays no role in this controversy. As a former Catholic and now practicing Muslim, I can find no fault in the idea of LGBT men and women openly serving my country. I may not support many American wars, but I certainly support the troops who give their time, their energy, and even their lives. I will never understand how someone can say that legislators have decided to "reject God's teachings" by repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Not in the Qur'an, nor in the Bible (please correct me if I'm wrong), does God condemn the participation of LGBT individuals in times of war. To say so falsely, quite frankly, is an insult to the strong and courageous members of our military.

As an American Muslim, I believe in the power and mercy of God, as well as the importance of fighting our country's injustices - those that have no place in a religious or secular arena.

I encourage you to let God be the judge and to let go of the hateful pre- and misconceptions that threaten to tear our world apart at the seams.

Don't ask. 

Don't hate.

Embrace.