Celebrate the 4th of July by signing our petition to support military families!

July 03, 2012

The Fourth of July is about celebrating the freedoms and independence that we as Americans are permitted in the United States. Our list of freedoms is extensive - we have the freedom of religion, the freedom to peaceably assembly, the freedom of speech and, the freedom to serve in our country's military. Thanks to last year's repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," even gay and lesbian soldiers can openly serve in the military.

Despite this, gay and lesbian service members and their families still face extensive discrimination by the federal government. Because of the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, which prohibits federal recognition of same-sex couples, gay and lesbian couples in the military do not receive the same protections that heterosexual couples are eligible for. 

Since May, Freedom to Marry has been working with Servicemembers Legal Defense Network to raise awareness about the specific ways in which all military families are not treated equally. All military couples are supposed to be eligible for a long list of federal benefits: They should be able to share health insurance and medical coverage, be issued military identification cards,  receive surviving spouse benefits, and live together on military bases. However, because DOMA denies federal recognition of marriages between same-sex couples, service members in gay and lesbian relationships do not receive these benefits. DOMA systematically ensures that American servicemembers are divided into two classes.

With Freedom to Serve, Freedom to Marry, Freedom to Marry and SLDN are working hard to bring an end to DOMA. We're shoring up enough signatures on our petition to repeal DOMA so that we can bring the petition to Congress and make a huge impact with big numbers. We need your support to make as big of a splash as possible. Sign the Freedom to Serve, Freedom to Marry petition here and tell Congress that you don't want gay and lesbian service members and their families to be treated differently than their straight counterparts.

Celebrate your independence and freedom this July by helping to secure the freedom to marry for all service members - and ensuring that those marriages are recognized. Sign HERE.