The Unknown Soldiers
World War II WAC Sergeant Johnnie Phelps, in response to a request from General Eisenhower that she ferret out the lesbians in her battalion:
Yessir. If the General pleases I will be happy to do this investigation…. But, sir, it would be unfair of me not to tell you, my name is going to head the list…. You should also be aware that you're going to have to replace all the file clerks, the section heads, most of the commanders, and the motor pool…. I think you should also take into consideration that there have been no illegal pregnancies, no cases of venereal disease, and the General himself has been the one to award good conduct commendations and service commendations to these members of the WAC detachment.
General Eisenhower: Forget the order.
~Bunny MacCulloch interview with Johnnie Phelps, 1982
Quoted in Odd Girls And Twilight Lovers by Lillian Faderman
And now quite often while she waited at the stations for the wounded, she would see unmistakable figures – unmistakable to her they would be at first sight, she would single them out of the crowd as by instinct. For as though gaining courage from the terror that is war, many a one who was even as Stephen, had crept out of her hole and come into the daylight, come into the daylight and faced her country: 'Well, here I am, will you take me or leave me?' And England had taken her, asking no questions – she was strong and efficient, she could fill a man's place, she could organize too, given scope for her talent. England had said: 'Thank you very much. You're just what we happen to want… at the moment.'
~Radclyffe Hall, The Well of Loneliness
Who are now the squarest people on earth? Who are the only ones left who want to get married and join the military? Homosexuals.
~Fran Lebowitz
You don't have to be straight to shoot straight.
~Barry Goldwater
Even the most homophobic societies welcome homosexuals into the military in times of war, glad to have our services. And, at least in twentieth century America and Europe, we have always been dispensed with, sometimes viciously, in times of peace. If our country is willing to be served by us in its hour of need, we have every right to expect to be welcomed when its need is not so pressing.
ServiceMembers Legal Defense Network
For gays in the military whose position may be in legal danger.
Ban on Gays is Senseless Attempt to Stall the Inevitable
Transcript of Barry Goldwater's commentary on the military gay ban that appeared this week in the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times.
Gays and Lesbians in the Military
Resources and essays.