Homosexuals in the Military

The military, full of testosterone pumped machines all fighting for the good of their country, battling the same mission for freedom, is thought of as one of the most manly and honorable positions that one can hold. The prejudice percentage of the public stereotypically think of homosexuals as more feminine men that are not able to be as tough and manly as a straight man. This is not the case; there are a lot of gay men that can do a lot more physically than the average straight man. The military is shaped into a family, a unit of one where there can be nothing to deter the unit off of it’s mission. Homosexuals serving in the military could cause sexual tensions, which could be damaging to unit cohesion, morale, discipline and the military order that has been cherished for centuries.

Initially, units of the military are worked, shaped, and trained to work and think as one, not as individuals. This unit cohesion is one of the biggest strengths of the United States military. If this cohesion is hindered in the least bit, it could mean the failure of their overall mission or even the death of soldiers of the unit. Many different factors can cause the cohesion of the unit to be altered. One of these factors is a family member serving in the same unit another family member, which has been addressed by the military and is worked around. Another factor that has been addressed by the military already is a man and a woman from the same unit dating each other.

Furthermore, the acting service of a homosexual man in a unit can be a very big factor if the unit was to find out about it. Division of the unit in morale and cohesion is something the military fights very hard against and implies rules to try and stop. If a unit was to find out about one of the soldiers in the unit being a homosexual, it could cause major division in morale and cohesion. Heterosexual males are often very insecure and prejudice and do not like to be around other males that are homosexual because they could think that the homosexual is attracted to them and is hitting on them or thinking about them. This is not always the case, as most homosexual men don’t objectify other men as straight men often do women. But, the insecurity and prejudice of straight men creates this false sense of objectification and makes them very uneasy and often abusive towards homosexual men.

Nevertheless, the acting roles of homosexual couples in a single unit can cause many problems for the couple and the unit itself. For example, if the unit was out on a patrol and came under enemy fire and one of the men involved in the homosexual relationship was to be captured or went missing, the other man in the relationship would feel obligated to find his mate and go against direct orders from the commanding officers which could put other soldiers lives in harm. Just as if a family member was in the same position and his or her brother, sister, father, or mother was captured or missing they would want to go against orders and save their loved one.

Moreover, some people say that the integration of homosexuals