Gays in the Military Research Paper

BACKGROUND

When President Clinton in 1991 called for the end of the ban on gays in the military, he set off a national debate on the topic that has not been resolved. Some argue that the presence of gays will negatively affect morale and discipline in the military; others feel gays are already serving their country effectively and discrimination against them is unconstitutional.

BROWSE FOR BOOKS ON THE SHELF USING THESE CALL NUMBERS

306.766

355.0086

LOOK UNDER THE FOLLOWING SUBJECTS IN THE CATALOG (CARD OR COMPUTER)

United States—Armed Forces—Gays—History—20th century

United States. Navy—Gays

United States—Armed Forces—Gays

United States—Armed Forces—Gays—Legal status, laws, etc.

REFERENCE MATERIALS THAT MAY HELP (BOOKS OR CD-ROMS)

Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report

CQ Almanac

Editorials on File. Facts on File.

Facts on File

PERIODICAL INDEXES TO SEARCH (BOOKS OR CD-ROMS)

EBSCO Magazine Article Summaries

InfoTrac

NewsBank and other newspaper indexes

Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature

SIRS (Social Issues Resources Series)

WILSONDISC

ONLINE DATABASES TO SEARCH

America Online

CompuServe
Dialog

Internet

Prodigy

KEY WORDS AND DESCRIPTORS FOR PERIODICAL INDEX AND ONLINE SEARCHES

Gays in the military

Homosexuals in the military

Gay military personnel

United States—Armed forces—Homosexuals

United States—Armed forces—Gays

United States—Army—Homosexuals

United States—Army—Gays

United States—Navy—Homosexuals

United States—Navy—Gays

SUGGESTIONS FOR NARROWING THIS TOPIC

Discuss the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.

Present the case for (or against) gays in the military.

Report on a specific case involving gays in the military; e.g., Tracy Thorne, Margarethe Cammermeyer, Jose Zuniga.

SUGGESTIONS FOR RELATED TOPICS

Gay rights

Homophobia

Right of privacy

Tailhook Scandal

Women in combat

This RESEARCH TOPIC GUIDE is intended to help the library user find information and materials on a particular topic in many sources throughout the library. Resources on this topic are not limited to those described and availability will depend upon the individual library. Feel free to ask a librarian for assistance.