Tag Archives: Cadet

Will West Point Take Lesbian Cadet Katherine Miller Back If DADT Is Repealed?

Posted on

Katherine Miller, the lesbian West Point cadet who quit in August over Don't Ask Don't Tell just one week before she would have to sign on to two more years at the academy and five years of military service, found life back home in Ohio was also a pretty miserable experience. So now she wants back into the military. If Congress successfully repeals the law that forced her to lie to brass, she's ready to serve her country. I guess the only question, then, is whether West Point wants her back.

Permalink | Post a comment | Add to del.icio.us


Tagged: , , , ,

Queerty

—  admin

Lesbian Cadet Wants Back Into West Point

Posted on

KATHERINE MILLER X390 (POINT) | ADVOCATE.COMKatherine Miller, a top 10–ranked West Point cadet who resigned earlier
this year after deciding a life in the closet was not for her, says she
is now trying to get back into the military.
Advocate.com: Daily News

—  admin

Lesbian cadet Katherine Miller could not live a lie

Posted on

Joe previously wrote about lesbian West Point military academy cadet, Katherine Miller, here. There are still a lot of gays and lesbians just waiting for our Commander-in-Chief to allow them the chance to return to active duty and continue their careers. Katherine Miller is one of them:

A lesbian who resigned from West Point in protest of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy now says she may re-apply if the rule is reversed.

This week is critical to that decision:

The Defense Department on Tuesday will release a report that will help shape what Congress decides on “don’t ask, don’t tell.” The study has examined whether lifting the ban can be done without disrupting the armed services and current war efforts and includes a survey of about 400,000 troops.

During his election campaign, President Obama promised gay-rights groups that he would push to repeal the 1993 law by the end of the year. The U.S. House already has signed off on the idea, and the Senate is preparing to debate it in the coming weeks.

So many careers in the balance, and don’t forget our nation’s security suffers every day from the continuation of the backwards policy.




AMERICAblog Gay

—  admin

Katherine Miller, Lesbian West Point Cadet, Can’t Go Home Again

Posted on

I was shocked that I didn't receive more support than that from my hometown. I think the Findlay area has been especially harsh on me – just really wary of what my intentions were. These are the people I spent most of my childhood growing up with … so I was hoping that Findlay would be able to accept me as one of their own and to support me in this. But I ended up getting some of my toughest critics from my hometown, and that personally disturbed me.

—Katherine Miller, the West Point cadet who quit over Don't Ask Don't Tell, saying the only place she didn't find an outpouring of support was from her hometown, where she graduated from high school just two years ago [via]

Permalink | Post a comment | Add to del.icio.us
Tagged: , , , ,

Queerty

—  John Wright

West Point Cadet Let Down by Hometown

Posted on

KATHERINE MILLER X390 (POINT) | ADVOCATE.COMFormer West Point cadet Katie Miller said that she is surprised by the lack of support for her coming out from her Ohio hometown.
Advocate.com: Daily News

—  John Wright

Liveblog tonight at 7:30 PM ET: former West Point Cadet Katherine Miller

Posted on

PHB live chat link: http://tinyurl.com/phbmiller

We’re pleased to bring former West Point Cadet Katherine Miller to the Blend for a liveblog. Miller resigned last week, stating that she was unwilling to ‘compromise her Integrity’ under the discriminatory policy of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

In her resignation letter, she cites the kinds of experiences she is unwilling to continue to endure:

I have created a heterosexual dating history to recite to fellow cadets when they inquire. I have endured unwanted approaches by male cadets for fear of being accused as a lesbian by rejecting or reporting these events. I have been coerced into ignoring derogatory comments towards homosexuals for fear of being alienated for my viewpoint.  In short, I have lied to my classmates and compromised my integrity and my identity by adhering to existing military policy.

While at the academy, I have made a deliberate effort to develop myself academically, physically, and militarily, but in terms of holistic personal growth I have reached a plateau. I am unwilling to suppress an entire portion of my identity any longer because it has taken a significant personal, mental, and social toll on me and detrimentally affected my professional development. I have experienced a relentless cognitive dissonance by attempting to adhere to ?654 [colloquially known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"] and retain my integrity, and I am retrospectively convinced that I am unable to live up to the Army Values as long as the policy remains in place.

Miller will be transferring to Yale University this fall on a Point Foundation Scholarship.

Here is a video of Miller discussing her decision to resign from West Point:

While at West Point Miller blogged under the pseudonym Private Second Class Citizen at Velvetpark. Check out a snippet below the fold.
Miller:

I kept busy by applying to other colleges and applying for LGBTQ scholarships. The one I pursued particularly aggressively required me to submit letters of recommendation within a week of being notified as a semifinalist. I saw the word “congratulations” in my inbox, confirmed my assumptions with a glance at the email, and picked up my hat and gloves before I headed out of my barracks room. I didn’t even have to think about it; I couldn’t pursue my activism any longer without help.

Five minutes later I rushed haphazardly into my professor’s office. I was sweating in my shiny, plastic Chorofram shoes, and after feeling my pulse my throat I became aware of how tight my collar was around my neck. “Ma’am, do you have a second,” as I closed her office door behind me, consciously worsening the stuffiness in the room and in my heavy wool uniform. Without waiting for a response, I seated myself. “Ma’am I’m transferring next semester. And I need a leader of recommendation in three days. For a scholarship for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students.”

“So does that mean you’re-?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re leaving because of Don’t Ask, Don’t-”

“Yes.”

She studied me for a second, asked a series of questions for clarification, and agreed to write me a letter of recommendation.

As soon as I was out of her sight, I did a little Jersey Shore fist pump in the air.

We hope to have a lively discussion about West Point, t he atmosphere there and Miller’s decision to come out.


Thanks to Sue Fulton at Knights Out for partnering with us this evening.
Pam’s House Blend – Front Page

—  John Wright

Lesbian Cadet Leaves West Point Over DADT

Posted on

Katherine Miller, a sociology student at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, filed for resignation Monday, citing the antigay attitudes of some classmates and her  refusal to hide her sexual orientation.
Daily News

—  John Wright

Who I Am: A Cadet Leaves West Point

Posted on

In her own words, here is a video of Cadet Katie Miller discussing her decision to resign from West Point because of life under DADT.

A soldier’s sexual orientation should never outweigh his or her record and performance. Congress must now act swiftly to repeal this shameful policy.

The segment of photos labeled LGBT Veterans was provided by Joann Santangelo. You can find her work and support her efforts to photograph LGBT veterans at www.joannsantangelo.com.

Video edited by Alberto Morales.

Cadet Miller blogged under the pseudonym Private Second Class Citizen at Velvetpark. Check out her writings there; here’s a snippet:

I kept busy by applying to other colleges and applying for LGBTQ scholarships. The one I pursued particularly aggressively required me to submit letters of recommendation within a week of being notified as a semifinalist. I saw the word “congratulations” in my inbox, confirmed my assumptions with a glance at the email, and picked up my hat and gloves before I headed out of my barracks room. I didn’t even have to think about it; I couldn’t pursue my activism any longer without help.

Five minutes later I rushed haphazardly into my professor’s office. I was sweating in my shiny, plastic Chorofram shoes, and after feeling my pulse my throat I became aware of how tight my collar was around my neck. “Ma’am, do you have a second,” as I closed her office door behind me, consciously worsening the stuffiness in the room and in my heavy wool uniform. Without waiting for a response, I seated myself. “Ma’am I’m transferring next semester. And I need a leader of recommendation in three days. For a scholarship for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students.”

“So does that mean you’re-?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re leaving because of Don’t Ask, Don’t-”

“Yes.”

She studied me for a second, asked a series of questions for clarification, and agreed to write me a letter of recommendation.

As soon as I was out of her sight, I did a little Jersey Shore fist pump in the air.

Pam’s House Blend – Front Page

—  John Wright

Who I Am: A Cadet Leaves West Point

Posted on

In her own words, here is a video of Cadet Katie Miller discussing her decision to resign from West Point because of life under DADT.

A soldier’s sexual orientation should never outweigh his or her record and performance. Congress must now act swiftly to repeal this shameful policy.

The segment of photos labeled LGBT Veterans was provided by Joann Santangelo. You can find her work and support her efforts to photograph LGBT veterans at www.joannsantangelo.com.

Video edited by Alberto Morales.

Cadet Miller blogged under the pseudonym Private Second Class Citizen at Velvetpark. Check out her writings there; here’s a snippet:

I kept busy by applying to other colleges and applying for LGBTQ scholarships. The one I pursued particularly aggressively required me to submit letters of recommendation within a week of being notified as a semifinalist. I saw the word “congratulations” in my inbox, confirmed my assumptions with a glance at the email, and picked up my hat and gloves before I headed out of my barracks room. I didn’t even have to think about it; I couldn’t pursue my activism any longer without help.

Five minutes later I rushed haphazardly into my professor’s office. I was sweating in my shiny, plastic Chorofram shoes, and after feeling my pulse my throat I became aware of how tight my collar was around my neck. “Ma’am, do you have a second,” as I closed her office door behind me, consciously worsening the stuffiness in the room and in my heavy wool uniform. Without waiting for a response, I seated myself. “Ma’am I’m transferring next semester. And I need a leader of recommendation in three days. For a scholarship for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students.”

“So does that mean you’re-?”

“Yes.”

“And you’re leaving because of Don’t Ask, Don’t-”

“Yes.”

She studied me for a second, asked a series of questions for clarification, and agreed to write me a letter of recommendation.

As soon as I was out of her sight, I did a little Jersey Shore fist pump in the air.

Pam’s House Blend – Front Page

—  John Wright