PORTLAND, OR, 22 November, 1993- President Clinton must hear our message: that he was right the first time, there is no compromise on civil rights. We expect that the decision on November 16, 1993, by the U.S. Court of Appeals, in the case of Midshipman Joseph Steffan, provides President Clinton with the courage of what we know to be his convictions. It is time to put an end to the legal battles against lesbians and gay men. End discrimination now so that we can work together on the challenges we must all face together. CONTACT PRESIDENT CLINTON and urge your senators and representatives to urge President Clinton to NOT appeal this decision to the Supreme Court. In this landmark civil rights case, the nation's second highest court clearly sent a message, with relevance to all Americans - prejudice may not form the basis for government policy. As the Court held, "Even if the government does not itself act out of prejudice, it cannot discriminate in an effort to avoid the effects of other's prejudice. Such discrimination plays directly into the hands of the bigots; it ratifies and encourages their prejudice...The Constitution does not allow government to subordinate a class of persons simply because others do not like them." The reasoning powerfully articulated in the court's opinion rejects each of the arguments that the government has raised in support of every version of the ban on military service by lesbian and gay service members. The Court's decision makes unconstitutional "Don't ask/don't tell," as well as the Nunn version recently signed by the President as part of the defense appropriations bill. While the government is the nominal loser in this case, we congratulate President Clinton, because today's ruling confirms clearly and forcefully that he was right on this issue in the beginning. His initial understanding that discrimination is wrong and unconstitutional has today been affirmed by a federal appellate court. Joseph Steffan is the former United States Naval Academy midshipman who was discharged form the Academy in 1987, six weeks before he was due to graduate, after acknowledging to a superior officer that he is gay. Mr. Steffan served with great distinction during his career at Annapolis. One evaluation predicted that the sky was the limit for his career. In his senior year, Mr. Steffan was selected as Battalion Commander, one of the ten highest ranking midshipmen at the Academy commending one-sixth of the Academy's midshipmen. Despite his success at the Academy, Steffan was compelled to resign six weeks before graduation because he remained true to the Naval Academy's honor code and answered "Yes, sir," when his commanding officer asked him, "I'd like your word, are you a homosexual?" Today Mr. Steffan is a third-year law student in Connecticut. Founded in 1992, Veterans for Human Rights works to advance the legal and civil rights of lesbian and gay servicemembers and veterans, and people with HIV/AIDS. Anders Winther Veterans for Human Rights Anders Winther veteran@agora.rain.com