www.ambiente.us SEPTEMBER / SEPTIEMBRE 2008
A Six-Figure Solution Missing One Common-Sense Addition
By Steve Ralls
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but the picture on the ground in Iraq is quickly making military
personnel who can translate Arabic priceless.
This morning's Christian Science Monitor reports that the Army is preparing to offer a staggering $150,000
retention bonus to service members who are proficient in Arabic, "in reflection of how critical it has become
for the US military to retain native language and cultural know-how in its ranks." Indeed, as the war in Iraq
goes on, and the military subsequently finds fewer and fewer people anxious for extended stays in the
desert, retaining trained troops is becoming a critical centerpiece of many commanders' strategies. The
supply of Arabic speakers just isn't keeping up with the demand created by ongoing wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
"The military's conventional language training program, the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, Calif.,
could not churn out enough American soldiers proficient in Arabic, Kurdish, Dari, Pashtu, and Farsi, and the
military quickly turned to private contractors to fill the gap," reporter Gordon Lubold writes. "Numerous
programs have sprouted up, including one at Fort Lewis, Wash., where soldiers are given a 10-month
immersion program in language and culture."
The Army is taking almost every step imaginable -- from six-figure bonuses to civilian interpreters in the
warzone to recruitment campaigns targeting Arab-American communities -- to beef up its language
capability. Every step, that is, except one. Army officials have yet to tell Congress to dump the "Don't Ask, Don't
Tell" law that has resulted in the dismissal of more than 5 dozen Arabic speakers who were otherwise
qualified and ready to serve.
In fact, as the House Armed Services Committee's Personnel Subcommittee tackled the question of
possible repeal in July, not a single representative from the Department of Defense was on-hand to weigh in
on the issue. And while, in some ways, that's a welcome change from 1993, when Pentagon brass
passionately insisted on excluding gay Americans from the forces, it also underscores that Congress has a
critically important role to play when it comes to bolstering military readiness.
Congressman Gary Ackerman (D-NY) has the right idea. A steadfast supporter of repealing "Don't Ask, Don't
Tell," he has also insisted that, until Congress can muster the will to do away with the law, the federal
government should at least be taking steps to keep qualified specialists, like Arabic linguists, in its employ.
In February 2007, Ackerman famously queried Secretary of State Condaleeza Rice about her department's
efforts to find trained Arabic speakers.
During hearings on the State Department's 2008 budget request, Ackerman noted that Secretary Rice
repeatedly emphasized the importance of recruiting qualified language experts to work in the agency.
Remembering that the armed forces have fired more than 300 language experts (including those 5 dozen
fluent in Arabic), Ackerman wondered, "Can we marry up those two -- or maybe that's the wrong word -- can
we have some kind of union of those two issues?"
"Well, it seems that the military has gone around and fired a whole bunch of people who speak foreign
languages -- Farsi and Arabic, etc.," Ackerman said. "For some reason, the military seems more afraid of gay
people than they are against terrorists, but they're very brave with the terrorists. ... If the terrorists ever got a
hold of this information, they'd get a platoon of lesbians to chase us out of Baghdad."
"This absurdity can't continue," Ackerman later wrote in an August '07 Newsday op-ed. "The 'Don't Ask, Don't
Tell' policy is not only wasteful and inefficient, it's unfair and un-American. In the middle of a war we are
throwing out good people who have volunteered to put their lives on the line for their country."
There's no doubt that trained Arabic speakers are increasingly worth their weight in gold. No one is arguing
that the military shouldn't offer attractive recruitment and retention packages for those who want to join, nor
that they should abandon an aggressive campaign to find new people who can get the job done. But on the
long list of things our country can do to keep patriotic Americans like Bleu Copas, Cathleen Glover and other
Arabic language experts in uniform is to get rid of the counter-productive law that bars them from service.
Retaining good straight troops to the tune of $150,000 may be an investment worth making, but in the long
run, that platoon of lesbians might just turn out to be priceless, too.
The Army's six-figure solution to its retention crisis is missing one common-sense addition that could make
a very big difference on the ground.
It's time to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." This absurdity, as Congressman Ackerman has said, can't continue.
------------------------------------------------------------------
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steve Ralls
Steve Ralls joined PFLAG in March 2008 as the organization's director
of communications.
Prior to his work with PFLAG, Steve worked for 8 years with Servicemembers Legal
Defense Network, a national legal aid and advocacy organization dedicated to
repeal of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on openly gay troops. In his
LGBTadvocacy work, Steve has been widely quoted in the media, including in The
New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, the Associated Press and other
national and local press
outlets. He has appeared on CNN, National Public Radio, CBS News on LOGO and
recently coordinated a ground-breaking 60 Minutes report on changing attitudes
regarding LGBT personnel in the U.S. militery.
Along with PFLAG communications coordinator Adam Ratliff, Steve develops,
implements and oversees PFLAG's communications program, including media, messaging,
online communications, publications and public education programs. He is also a regular
contributor to The Bilerico Project, and is a steerinig committee member of Amnesty
International's OUTfront program, focusing on international LGBT human rights issues. Mr.
Ralls also is a regular contributor to Ambiente Magazine.
He can be reached at sralls@pflag.org.
Copyright © huffingtonpost.com & AMBIENTE Magazine.
A Six-Figure Solution Missing One Common-Sense Addition
By Steve Ralls
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but the picture on the ground in Iraq is quickly making military
personnel who can translate Arabic priceless.
This morning's Christian Science Monitor reports that the Army is preparing to offer a staggering $150,000
retention bonus to service members who are proficient in Arabic, "in reflection of how critical it has become
for the US military to retain native language and cultural know-how in its ranks." Indeed, as the war in Iraq
goes on, and the military subsequently finds fewer and fewer people anxious for extended stays in the
desert, retaining trained troops is becoming a critical centerpiece of many commanders' strategies. The
supply of Arabic speakers just isn't keeping up with the demand created by ongoing wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
"The military's conventional language training program, the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, Calif.,
could not churn out enough American soldiers proficient in Arabic, Kurdish, Dari, Pashtu, and Farsi, and the
military quickly turned to private contractors to fill the gap," reporter Gordon Lubold writes. "Numerous
programs have sprouted up, including one at Fort Lewis, Wash., where soldiers are given a 10-month
immersion program in language and culture."
The Army is taking almost every step imaginable -- from six-figure bonuses to civilian interpreters in the
warzone to recruitment campaigns targeting Arab-American communities -- to beef up its language
capability. Every step, that is, except one. Army officials have yet to tell Congress to dump the "Don't Ask, Don't
Tell" law that has resulted in the dismissal of more than 5 dozen Arabic speakers who were otherwise
qualified and ready to serve.
In fact, as the House Armed Services Committee's Personnel Subcommittee tackled the question of
possible repeal in July, not a single representative from the Department of Defense was on-hand to weigh in
on the issue. And while, in some ways, that's a welcome change from 1993, when Pentagon brass
passionately insisted on excluding gay Americans from the forces, it also underscores that Congress has a
critically important role to play when it comes to bolstering military readiness.
Congressman Gary Ackerman (D-NY) has the right idea. A steadfast supporter of repealing "Don't Ask, Don't
Tell," he has also insisted that, until Congress can muster the will to do away with the law, the federal
government should at least be taking steps to keep qualified specialists, like Arabic linguists, in its employ.
In February 2007, Ackerman famously queried Secretary of State Condaleeza Rice about her department's
efforts to find trained Arabic speakers.
During hearings on the State Department's 2008 budget request, Ackerman noted that Secretary Rice
repeatedly emphasized the importance of recruiting qualified language experts to work in the agency.
Remembering that the armed forces have fired more than 300 language experts (including those 5 dozen
fluent in Arabic), Ackerman wondered, "Can we marry up those two -- or maybe that's the wrong word -- can
we have some kind of union of those two issues?"
"Well, it seems that the military has gone around and fired a whole bunch of people who speak foreign
languages -- Farsi and Arabic, etc.," Ackerman said. "For some reason, the military seems more afraid of gay
people than they are against terrorists, but they're very brave with the terrorists. ... If the terrorists ever got a
hold of this information, they'd get a platoon of lesbians to chase us out of Baghdad."
"This absurdity can't continue," Ackerman later wrote in an August '07 Newsday op-ed. "The 'Don't Ask, Don't
Tell' policy is not only wasteful and inefficient, it's unfair and un-American. In the middle of a war we are
throwing out good people who have volunteered to put their lives on the line for their country."
There's no doubt that trained Arabic speakers are increasingly worth their weight in gold. No one is arguing
that the military shouldn't offer attractive recruitment and retention packages for those who want to join, nor
that they should abandon an aggressive campaign to find new people who can get the job done. But on the
long list of things our country can do to keep patriotic Americans like Bleu Copas, Cathleen Glover and other
Arabic language experts in uniform is to get rid of the counter-productive law that bars them from service.
Retaining good straight troops to the tune of $150,000 may be an investment worth making, but in the long
run, that platoon of lesbians might just turn out to be priceless, too.
The Army's six-figure solution to its retention crisis is missing one common-sense addition that could make
a very big difference on the ground.
It's time to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." This absurdity, as Congressman Ackerman has said, can't continue.
------------------------------------------------------------------
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Steve Ralls
Steve Ralls joined PFLAG in March 2008 as the organization's director
of communications.
Prior to his work with PFLAG, Steve worked for 8 years with Servicemembers Legal
Defense Network, a national legal aid and advocacy organization dedicated to
repeal of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on openly gay troops. In his
LGBTadvocacy work, Steve has been widely quoted in the media, including in The
New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, the Associated Press and other
national and local press
outlets. He has appeared on CNN, National Public Radio, CBS News on LOGO and
recently coordinated a ground-breaking 60 Minutes report on changing attitudes
regarding LGBT personnel in the U.S. militery.
Along with PFLAG communications coordinator Adam Ratliff, Steve develops,
implements and oversees PFLAG's communications program, including media, messaging,
online communications, publications and public education programs. He is also a regular
contributor to The Bilerico Project, and is a steerinig committee member of Amnesty
International's OUTfront program, focusing on international LGBT human rights issues. Mr.
Ralls also is a regular contributor to Ambiente Magazine.
He can be reached at sralls@pflag.org.
Copyright © huffingtonpost.com & AMBIENTE Magazine.
| GAY & LESBIAN ALLIANCE AGAINST DEFAMATION WWW.GLAAD.ORG |
| RESIDENTIAL COMMERICAL Licensed Across Florida CGC060449 dructorbuilds.com 305-401-8914 |
| Gay American Heroes Foundation Honoring LGBT persons who died because of their sexual orientation and gender identity www.gayamericanheroes.com |
| Endulge Yourself... Chocolate Themed Baskets & Gifts www.dulcestore.com |
| Web resource for LGBTQ youth www.matthewsplace.com |
| An online forum on sexual health education for gay and bisexual men www.lifelube.org |
| www.familiasporladiversidad.org |
| .Fresh-Squeezed Paradise MIAMI RIVER INN miamiriverinn.com |
