Word: rotcs
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...years ago today, members of Students for a Democratic Society stormed University Hall and evicted administrators. Their protest of the United States' involvement in Vietnam was eventually squashed by local police, but they did succeed in winning at least one victory--the eviction of the Reserve Officers' Training Program (ROTC) from the Harvard campus...
Since 1969, undergraduate ROTC cadets and midshipmen have had to travel to MIT to participate in classes and drills. This arrangement has surely caused its fair share of physical inconvenience to the men and women who participate in ROTC, but, more importantly, it has burdened them with the stigma of Harvard's official disapproval. Now, with the shadow of Vietnam long since faded, conscientious members of the Undergraduate Council have introduced a bill that would welcome ROTC back to this campus...
...surprisingly, supporters of ROTC have been met with passionate resistance, predominantly from the gay rights community. While ROTC was originally ejected from Harvard due to its association with an unpopular war, progressive activists now want to bar its return on the grounds that it is a discriminatory organization. The source of this charge is the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy--approved by Congress--that precludes openly gay individuals from serving in the armed forces...
Whether "don't ask, don't tell" is, in fact, discriminatory is a matter for debate. Gays are not prohibited from participating in ROTC per se. They are merely forbidden from openly proclaiming their homosexuality or engaging in homosexual activity. Many would argue that, by denying homosexuals the right to express their fundamental identity, this policy constitutes a de facto interdiction against gays because they are gay. But on surface it must be acknowledged that "don't ask, don't tell" is merely a behavioral regulation--one of many in the military that govern the sexuality of all servicemen...
...that the protests also set into motion a number of important institutional changes whose effects are still felt today. The basic goal of SDS and the protestors was to force the University to server its ties with the military and in particular to eliminate the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program on campus. It is ironic that as this anniversary passes, a bill is before the Undergraduate Council to reverse this hard-won reform...