Openly Gay Teens Denied Entry Into Us Army

PHILADELPHIA - Three openly gay applicants were rejected by a local military recruiting center yesterday because they are "morally and administratively ineligible," one applicant said.
"Our applications were denied.
"None of us were accepted," said Jarrett Lucas, 20, of South Philadelphia, outside the Army Recruiting Station on Broad Street near Cherry.
Shane Bagwell, 18, of Wyndmoor, Montgomery County, wanted to join the Air Force. "I'm disappointed," he said. "I hope one day things will be different."
The trio - Bagwell, Lucas and Marissa Cotroneo, 19 - alerted the media of their intent to sign up for military duty and challenge the government's 13-year-old "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," policy, which bans openly gay people from joining the military.
A representative for the recruiting station, Maj. Kelvin Cooper, stationed at Lakehurst Naval Base in New Jersey, said, "The policy is what it is. Unless the senators in Congress want to change [the ban], we'll abide by the order we are given," he said.
Currently, a bill known as the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which proposes to lift the ban and replace it with a policy that does not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, was introduced in the House of Representatives in March 2005.
Unless it passes, the ban stays.
Yesterday, the young adults entered the recruiting office at 11:07 a.m. and emerged 70 minutes later, after a battery of tests.
"Once we were in there, we were up front about our sexuality," Lucas said after the meeting.
He added that the recruiter said, "If we're serious about enlisting, we'd have to lie and conceal our sexual orientation."
The recruiters "were asking if we were sincere about enlisting, and we told them we are sincere and are ready to go to boot camp if they accept us," said Cotroneo, of Scranton.
She cited her "strong desire" to lead and motivate others as reasons for wanting to join the Army, where she said such skills can be developed.
Lucas said he wanted to enlist because he believes in "democracy and freedom."
Bagwell wanted to follow the military tradition in his family.
"I would love to serve," said Cotroneo. "We're very hurt that our country is rejecting us."
Cooper, the recruiting rep, questioned their motives. "If they truly wanted to sign up, they would have come without the media circus," Cooper said, stressing that recruiters simply enforce the federal ban.
from The Philadelphia Daily News