Exclusion: Homosexuals and the Right to Serve

The author of this timely, sure-to-be-controversial study maintains that the rationale behind the ban on homosexuals in the military is ``the result of applying common sense and experience to discernible characteristics of homosexuals. . . .'' Wells-Petry argues that federal courts over the last few decades have generally ruled that the homosexual exclusion policy does not violate civil rights and that the ban is justified, at least in part, by abundant evidence of the dire medical consequences of homosexual practices (which require expensive specialized treatment). The author, a major in the Army Judge Advocate General's Office, question s the Kinsey Report statistic that approximately one-tenth of the American population is gay (a figure often cited to support the argument that homosexuals already constitute a significant proportion of the military). A more accurate estimate, she contends, is 1% or 2%. The ban should stand, Wells-Petry argues, because open admission of homosexuals into the armed services would adversely affect morale and combat-readiness. The book will be a much-cited reference in the continuing national debate. (May)