Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. (Public domain photo)
The Defense Department has reached a settlement with veterans who were discharged under discriminatory policies like “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” potentially allowing more than 30,000 to receive benefits.
Pending approval by a federal judge, the settlement agreement will update discharge papers for LGBTQ+ veterans who were separated from the military, removing references to their sexual orientation, while allowing those who were denied honorable discharges the right to seek an immediate review.
The agreement stems from federal civil rights litigation, Farrell v. Department of Defense, filed in August 2023 by a group of LGBTQ+ veterans.
“Coming from a family with a long history of military service, I was beyond proud to enlist in 1985 to contribute to my country,” said Sherrill Farrell, a U.S. Navy veteran who was the lead plaintiff in the case.
“When I was discharged because of my sexual orientation, I felt that my country was telling me that my service was not valuable — that I was ‘less than’ because of who I loved,” she said. “Today, I am once again proud to have served my country by standing up for veterans like myself, and ensuring our honor is recognized.”
The lawsuit came as the Pentagon under the Biden-Harris administration worked to streamline the process by which veterans harmed by “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” — and anti-LGBTQ+ discriminatory policies that came before — can seek redress.
This summer, President Joe Biden issued pardons to thousands of service members convicted under the Uniform Code of Military Justice’s former Article 125, which criminalized sodomy, and was rewritten in 2013 to proscribe only forcible acts.
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