The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) adopted an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) put forth by Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) that would compromise religious liberties of service members, erode the ability of military commanders to protect good order & discipline & undermine the successful implementation of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” repeal. Allyson Robinson, OutServe-SLDN Executive Director & Army Veteran stated, “Religious liberty is a core American value, & we support the accommodation of all beliefs. What we can never support is legislation that sanctions one belief at the expense of others & places unit cohesion, the safety of our troops, & their ability to accomplish the mission in jeopardy & that’s exactly what this bill would do. The military already has in place policies that adequately protect a service member’s personal beliefs while also protecting unit cohesion & good order & discipline. This amendment is nothing but a thinly veiled attempt to sabotage the climate of inclusion & respect for all that our Commander-in-Chief & Secretary of Defense have called for in our military & would create a license to bully, harass & discriminate against service members based on religion, gender, sexual orientation, or any number of other characteristics.” If enacted the Fleming amendment would protect inappropriate, defamatory & discriminatory speech & actions – a significant expansion of current protections for beliefs & would leave commanders with no recourse against such prejudicial conduct when it occurs in their units. Hopefully this amendment will be defeated. Updates To Come…
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