Impacts of Repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

On 2 March 2010, the Secretary of Defense appointed a working group to undertake a comprehensive review of the impacts of repealing the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law. This book assesses the impact of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell on the basis of military readiness, military effectiveness, unit cohesion, recruiting, retention and family readiness. At the outset, it is important to note the environment in which the review was conducted. The men and women in uniform who risk their lives to defend our Nation are, along with their families, stretched and stressed, and have faced years of multiple and lengthy deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. Some question the wisdom of taking on the emotional and difficult issue of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell on top of all else.