Evelyn Thomas
Tonight at the LGBT Community Center of New York, four Marine authors spoke about their lives in the Corps and serving under the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Law.
All four read from their published works and spoke to the crowd about the DADT policy and answered questions regarding their service.
The event, sponsored Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) was hosted by former service member, Tanya Domi.
The authors included Former Marine Corps Officer Rich Merrit (Secrets of a Gay Marine Porn Star), former Marine Corps NCO, Brett Edward Stout (Sugar-baby Bridge), Former Marine Corps NCO, Justin Crockett Elzie (Playing by the Rules) and former Marine Corps NCO Evelyn Thomas (Does Butch Nappy Hair Offend You?…). The evening featured each reading from their published works – some of the stories were autobiographical while some were fictional, but all the authors shared some of their own stories of serving in the Corps under DADT. We encourage you to look up each of these talented writer’s works and give them a read – if tonight’s samplings were any indication of the heart-wrenching, brave and funny stories in their books, then you shouldn’t miss out.
Including Dan Choi, who was in the audience, we had three of the veterans who were arrested at the
Justin Crockett Elzie
White House on Monday during the GetEQUAL protest, it was a nice reunion.
And what’s more, while the authors were reading, we found out that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he would be bringing the repeal of DADT up for a vote after the Thanksgiving recess. Keep telling your stories, it’s making a difference.
Brett Edward Stout
Rich Merritt
Tanya Domi
Brett Edward Stout
Evelyn Thomas
Dan Choi
Tanya Domi, Dan Choi, Brett Edward Stout
Tanya Domi, Rich Merritt, Brett Edward Stout, Evelyn Thomas and Justin Crockett Elzie
Talk About Equality 
Gay equality should exist as a norm of fact and thought period !
Sadly for a reason that simply makes no sense we live without equality in the UK while politicians like the British conservative party want our vote, when 150 plus of their members of parliament voted AGAINST Gay equality, over 50 of them voted very strongly against gay equality!
I live with my disabled gay Civil partner (we are not permitted to call it a Marriage as that is illegal, ONLY heterosexuals can call it Marriage) in West Berkshire England and have experienced extraordinary persecution while the authorities totally ignore this year long hate crime, etc !
British nationalism and intolerance under this “Government” is on the increase, and Gay (LGBT) people are treated increasingly as second class citizens, persecuted, and hated.
This Tory UK “government” wishes to abandoned the European Human rights Act this UK Government signed up for. They say it “protects the wrong people” ? I guess any minority, non hetero, non conservative Tory are the “wrong people” !