From: Date: Wed, 21 Dec 1994 23:22:33 -0500 Subject: Needs of WW2 vets / GLB vets. The following post was written by Cale Lehman, Acting Executive Vice President of the Gay: Lesbian: Bisexual: VETERANS of Greater New York. NEEDS OF WORLD WAR II VETERANS Cale Lehman - 14 December 1994 World War II was the event that defined the latter half of the twentieth century. The veterans of World War II are still the largest component in our veteran population. These aging veterans also represent the most urgent problems facing the Department of Veterans Affairs today. Nationally, there are an estimated 8,300,000 World War II veterans, accounting for 32% of the total U.S. veteran population. We are now commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of World War II, which means that almost all of the veterans of that war are 67 years of age or older. In New York State alone, there are hundreds of thousands of veterans in this age group. For years the V.A. has been working on the problem of homeless veterans, but the major problem for the vets of World War II is not present homelessness but the risk of homelessness. The problem is particularly acute in large metropolitan areas like New York, where many are renters rather than homeowners. We are faced with this problem partly because we are not a nation of savers. Many Americans mistakenly assume that at age 65 the combination of Social Security and Medicare will ensure an anxiety-free retirement. Also, some who might want to save for retirement spend most of their working lives scraping by on subsistence-level wages, while others have spotty working careers in which periods of employment are punctuated by frequent layoffs. Some aging veterans who planned to continue working indefinitely find that their physical condition forces them to retire, even though they may not be bedridden or permanently hospitalized. But any older veteran who is a renter and who depends entirely on Social Security for a source of income is at risk of homelessness, regardless of how he came to be in this situation. Obviously, neither the Department of Veterans Affairs nor any of our veterans' organizations would want to see a surge in homelessness among the veterans of World War II. For both humane and political reasons, quick action is called for. The age of World War II veterans qualifies them for Section 8 supported housing, but this program gives top priority to those who are presently homeless. Older veterans at risk of homelessness need more access to Section 8 benefits; more flexibility is called for. The V.A. is their linkage to HUD, but the outcome of this year's Congressional elections means that at some point HUD itself may be drastically cut back or eliminated. So far we have been talking about World War II veterans as a group. Now it's time to talk about a special segment of that group--World War II veterans who are gay men, lesbians or bisexuals. For brevity's sake I will refer to them simply as gay veterans, with the understanding that the term is meant to be inclusive. Gay veterans of World War II constitute a majority of the members of GLB VETS. 57% of our members are over 65 years of age. I count myself among that group. I am a gay veteran of the World War II era. Our gay World War II vets have all the problems of the larger group, plus other problems that are uniquely theirs. Until GLB VETS reorganized in January of this year and obtained an office here at the Veterans Memorial Center, we ourselves did not suspect the extent of some of these problems, nor did we appreciate the critical role that GLB VETS can play in the lives of gay veterans in my age group. To understand what we are like, it is important to recognize that we were gay long before the Stonewall riots, long before there was anything called Gay Liberation. This was a time that was even less tolerant than the present. We come from a time when some fathers and mothers had their own teenage children committed to mental institutions because they were gay. One result of growing up in this hostile climate was that we tended to be very circumspect about our sexual orientation. We didn't want to live in the closet, but we came out of the closet very cautiously and mostly after dark. When the war was over thousands of us flocked from rural areas and smaller cities to great metropolitan centers like New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. By day, most of us were anonymous, melting into the straight population and working at a variety of jobs. On our own time we favored friendly gay bars in sections of the city that were in effect gay ghettos. We didn't think of these areas as power bases; they were simply places where we could be openly and comfortably ourselves. Some veterans in my age group still aren't comfortable in straight surroundings. They may be very skillful at assuming a straight facade, but they prefer to stick to their own group of gay friends where they can be themselves and feel at home. GLB VETS serves an important function in their lives by providing social activities for them and by bringing them news of veterans' benefits that they would otherwise be unaware of. Until our organization held seminars for seniors, it had never occurred to many of them to go to VA Medical Centers for health care. Some didn't even realize that they were entitled to do so. One problem of gay World War II vets is that many worked at low-income jobs, so they have even smaller financial backlogs than straight veterans of the same age. In spite of the myth that gay men earn fantastic salaries, we earn less on average than straight men do. By the same token, lesbians earn less on average than straight women. Of the four groups, lesbians have the lowest average income by far. Some veteran advocates have suggested that the best solution for the threat of homelessness among older veterans would be retirement villages cosponsored by the Federal Government and states or cities. The residents of these villages would pay a third of their income in rent and would live in a cooperative environment. We do not see this as a viable solution for gay older veterans. As an unpopular minority they would feel very isolated and unhappy in a community that is predominantly straight. That's why we believe it would be preferable to develop programs that would enable them to stay in their present apartments, so long as they are physically able and mentally competent. This would be the most economical and humane solution and the one most conducive to independence and physical and mental well being. Isolation can be a problem for older gay veterans, especially those who have outlived a lover with whom they shared many years of their lives. A small minority of gay World War II vets are parents and grandparents, but most of us have no younger generation to serve as a support group for us. That's why we would favor a satellite VET CENTER in the Greenwich Village area, one in which GLB VETS would play a key role. Ideally, this might be Ideally, this might be combined with a storefront drop-in center. The stresses and anxieties in the lives of our gay World War II vets make them good candidates for group and individual counseling, but GLB VETS would have to play an intermediary role for some who are resistant to the idea of therapy. As this aging population of veterans becomes more vulnerable to chronic physical ailments that require periodic check-ups or treatment, neighborhood medical clinics would also be highly desirable. Some gay older vets are reluctant to deal directly with any agency of the government, even with the V.A. Our organization, GLB VETS, is the group they trust, the group they turn to first. For many gay World War II veterans, including myself, GLB VETS is our family and our home. To steal a line from Robert Frost, this is our place where when we have to go there, they have to take us in. ----- (The writer is currently serving as Acting Executive Vice President for the Gay: Lesbian: Bisexual: VETERANS, of Greater New York, is a longtime member, and, a decorated World War Two veteran.) ----- (Conclusion)