TALKING POINTS COMPARING CURRENT OPINION POLLS ON GAYS IN THE MILITARY TO THOSE ON BLACKS IN THE MILITARY IN THE 1940s * Opinions of military personnel should not form a major basis for determining whether to lift the ban on gays and lesbians in the military. Had President Truman listened to the opinions of his military personnel, he would have never issued his historic Executive Order ending segregation in the armed forces. Armed with opinion polls, those who support the ban argue that military personnel do not want gay men, lesbians and bisexuals in the armed services and that deference to the opinion of service personnel is appropriate in this matter. Exactly the same argument was used against African- Americans in the 1940s by supporters of racial segregation. An Army study, conducted in May 1942 by the research branch of the Special Services Division of the War Department, found an overwhelming majority of servicemembers strongly opposed to desegregation of the PX and recreational facilities. Another Army study conducted following World War II found a majority of white servicemembers did not think that racial integration in the military was appropriate. 81% opposed integration in the PX; 83% opposed integration of the service clubs; and 84% stated their belief that there should be no integration of the entire military. Samuel A. Stouffer, et al., The American Soldier (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1949). * Initial fears and prejudices about another group of people are mitigated when soldiers have an opportunity to work and learn together. Historical data shows that much of the prejudices of white soldiers dissipated dramatically once they had the opportunity to work with African-American soldiers. A 1945 poll of infantrymen serving in partially integrated units in the European Theater of Operations found that, initially, 64% of white soldiers were opposed to integration. However, after working with African- Americans for a period of time, 77% of the white soldiers questioned held favorable attitudes towards racial integration. A study done by the U.S. Army during the Korean War, Project Clear, produced similar results. Researchers found that while 84% of white soldiers opposed racial integration in 1943, only 44% opposed the same racial integration in 1951. Furthermore, integrated units favored the policy of desegregation more than all- white units that had no experience working with African- Americans. See Charles C. Moskos, Jr., "Racial Integration in the Armed Forces," American Journal of Sociology, September 1966, p. 140. TALKING POINTS CURRENT OPINION POLLS ON GAYS AND LESBIANS IN THE MILITARY * Public opinion has consistently supported the right of gay men, lesbians and bisexuals to serve in the military over the past decade. Opponents to lifting the ban on gay people in the military argue that the American public does not support the right of gay people to serve. While recent national polls vary on the issue, an overwhelming number of polls over the past decade demonstrate otherwise. Gallup Poll. Do you think homosexuals should or should not be hired for the armed services? Year Should Be Hired. 1977 51% 1982 52% 1985 55% 1987 55% June 1992 57% Nov. 1992 49% (plurality) Penn & Schoen (August 1991, immediately after Persian Gulf War.) Question 1. Should gays and lesbians be discharged from the military solely because of their sexual orientation? Answer. No: 81% Question 2. Should gays and lesbians be admitted to serve in the military? Answer. Yes: 65% * While public opinion polls have inherent problems and do not always translate into good policy, these polls indicate that those who argue that public opinion is solidly against allowing gays and lesbians to serve in the military are simply wrong. * *