The Record

Military recruiters descended on Harvard Law School this week, prompting a new series of protests regarding the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) policy. DADT, passed by President Clinton in 1994 and codified in 10 U.S.C. § 654, states, in part, that servicemen will be discharged if he/she "has engaged in, attempted to engage in, or solicited another to engage in a homosexual act...[or] stated that he or she is a homosexual or bisexual, or words to that effect."

Since its inception, DADT has resulted in the dismissal of over 11,000 servicemen from the Armed Forces. Democratic Presidential Nominee Barack Obama '91 supports a repeal of the ban, while Republican Presdential Nominee John McCain has stated he would keep DADT in place.

HLS-Lambda implored students to sign up for interviews with the military recruiters in order to protest DADT. The politics of that protest, and the response of the administration, are discussed further in the editorial section of today's Record.

Dean Elena Kagan issued a statement by email to the HLS community on Wednesday morning. The email is reprinted below in its entirety.

"To all members of the HLS community: As many of you know, the U.S. military will be recruiting on campus today as part of our normal OCI process. I write to give newcomers to our community some background on this issue, as well as to state some views on the matter.

The Law School's anti-discrimination policy, adopted in 1979, provides that any employer that uses the services of OCS to recruit at the school must sign a statement indicating that it does not discriminate on various bases, including sexual orientation. As a result of this policy, the military was barred for many years from using the services of OCS. The military retained full access to our students (and vice versa) through the good offices of the Harvard Law School Veterans Association, which essentially took the place of OCS in enabling interviews to occur.

In 2002, a ruling by the Department of Defense made clear that unless the Law School lifted its general ban for the military, the entire university would lose federal funding under a statute known as the Solomon Amendment. In 2006, the Supreme Court, in Rumsfeld v. FAIR, upheld the Solomon Amendment against legal challenge.

As a result, the Law School now includes recruiters from the military in its regular interviewing process. Although the Law School receives very little federal funding, the University as a whole receives about 15% of its operating budget from such funds, with the Medical School and the School of Public Health receiving by far the largest share of this money for scientific and medical research. Like all other law schools that are part of larger universities, we determined that we could not place these research funds in jeopardy.

This is a difficult issue, so let me say a few words on what I believe to be the core matter. I believe discrimination against gays and lesbians seeking to enter military service is wrong - both unwise and unjust. And this wrong harms the fabric of our own community by denying an opportunity to some of our students that other of our students have.

The military is a noble profession, which provides extraordinary service to each of us every day. But this simple fact heightens, rather than excuses, the inequity in this case. The Law School remains firmly committed to the principle of equal opportunity for all persons, without regard to sexual orientation. And I look forward to the time when all our students can pursue any career path they desire, including the path-as deeply honorable as any I can imagine-of devoting their professional lives to the defense of this country.

Best,
Elena Kagan"

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