Hiding for My Life: Being Gay in the Navy

Retired U.S. Navy officer Solt’s moving debut recounts how she concealed her sexual orientation during her two decades of military service. After working at Arizona gas stations and car washes for a year following her high school graduation, Solt signed up for a four-year stint in the Navy in 1984. Shortly after joining, she was raped by an acquaintance, whom her supervisor failed to discipline, and in her early days with the military she struggled mightily with the rigid structure and rampant sexism. Solt found solace in Tami, a woman she befriended after being assigned to the Chiefs Mess. Her connection to Tami helped Solt realize she was gay, a fact that threatened to get her kicked out of the military. Across multiple relationships, Solt lived in fear of being found out, which fueled her long-simmering alcohol problem even as she rose through the ranks. After getting sober and retiring in 2006, Solt came out of the closet and pursued a master’s degree in counseling, resolving to help others “live the truth of who they are.” Solt is remarkably evenhanded about her service, balancing an awareness of the scars her secrecy caused with an appreciation for the “new family, purpose, and place to hide” the Navy provided. This clear-eyed account does justice to Solt’s pain. (June)