Gay troops, successfully off the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" battlefield, are ready to wage their next war on the "Defense of Marriage Act" (with a little help from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network). Details follow.

Reports the Washington Post:

Lawyers plan to sue in federal district court in Boston, the same court that ruled last year that the federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional because it interferes with a state’s right to define marriage. That decision is being appealed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit.

The suit also challenges provisions of federal code regarding spouses that lawyers said bar gay couples from accessing benefits provided by the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Those benefits include military identification cards, access to bases, recreational programs, spousal support groups and burial rights at national cemeteries.

Upon word of the lawsuit on Wednesday, a Pentagon spokeswoman said the military was “engaged in a careful and deliberate review" of spousal benefits in the wake of DADT repeal.

(Source: WaPo)

Comments (1)

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written by Out Military, October 29, 2011

Equality still eludes gay service members. Thanks to DOMA legally married same-sex military spouses are denied health insurance, commissary, housing allowance and other base privileges as compared to their opposite-sex married counterparts. For those interested - OutMilitary.com has been providing a supportive environment for friending, sharing and networking between Gay active military, vets and supporters since December, 2010.

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