Dozens of activists held a sit-in Tuesday at a Madison army recruiting station to protest the military's ""don't ask, don't tell"" policy, which bars any openly gay soldiers and recruits from the U.S. Army.
After warnings from Madison police on the scene, five protestors went through with the sit-in and received $400 citations each for ""unlawful trespassing after notification,"" said organizer and UW-Madison sophomore Derek House.
House and fellow UW-Madison students John Alaniz and Jacob Reitan organized the sit-in at the east side U.S. Army Recruiting Station, 1781 Thierer Rd., because they were denied enlistment on Aug. 30 after telling recruiters they were gay.
House said the three scored highly on military aptitude tests and wanted to join the armed forces for most of their lives. But, he added, they were not prepared to abandon their identities.
""We will not lie as a condition of our service,"" House said.
According to the military policy, if a homosexual person does not disclose his or her sexual orientation, the military cannot investigate or deny him or her from service in the armed forces.
The sit-in is part of a national effort by Soulforce, an organization working to end political and religious oppression of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender persons. The organization expects more than 500 people to participate in fall campaigns in 30 cities across the nation.
""It's an effort by young adults to challenge ‘don't ask, don't tell' in a way that its never been done before,"" said Haven Herrin, a Soulforce young adult organizer in Minneapolis. According to Herrin, there have been 25 arrests at various sit-ins this year. He added recruiters have rejected 30 young adults from joining the army because they are gay.
Recruiters denied enlistment to the three men because of clear policies from the Department of the Army and the Department of Defense regarding ""don't ask, don't tell,"" according to Army Public Affairs Officer Sara Micka.
""An applicant who self admits he or she is homosexual, we tell them that they don't qualify for enlistment under the current policy, and we stop processing their application,"" Micka said.
The Soulforce effort will continue in 17 more cities, but for now the protests are over in Madison. Both Herrin and House hope their efforts lead to legislation that would abolish the ""don't ask, don't tell"" policy.
Despite Tuesday's protest, House said he still wants to serve in the armed forces.
""Our desire for service has not gone away,"" House said. ""And we still have that desire to serve our country.""
