Research on the Open Secret: Possible Implications for
Don't Ask Don't Tell
Andrew D. Reichert Texas A&M University
|
|
April 21, 2009
As a doctoral student in
Counseling Psychology at Texas A&M University, I am
currently conducting research on the open secret, a
phrase sometimes used to describe situations where a
gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender (GLBT) person's
sexuality is known, but not discussed. For example,
Kenji Yoshino, a dean and law professor at Yale
University and the author of Covering: The Hidden
Assault on Our Civil Rights, notes that, "Many gay
people have had this experience of the 'open secret.' I
was gay – she knew I was gay – I knew she knew I was gay
... [But] because I would never acknowledge our collective
knowledge, she could not do so either. So we carried on
– each week more strained than the last" (p. 62).
To date, I have collected 113
responses to an online survey regarding the open secret,
from which I am currently conducting follow-up
interviews with many of my respondents. The
participants represent a variety of demographics,
including sex, race, sexual orientation, and age,
ranging from 18 to 77 years. Additionally, the
participants represent a variety of educational and
vocational backgrounds, including those who have served
in the military, both before and during the Don’t Ask
Don’t Tell policy.
Although still preliminary, one
theme that appears to be emerging from the qualitative
data is the concept that a GLBT person's coming out of
the closet may actually help bring people closer
together, rather than drive them further apart. The
Don't Ask Don't Tell policy assumes that the presence of
openly GLBT servicemembers will undermine unit cohesion
and morale, when actually, it is the secrecy and anxiety
associated with the policy that may be what truly
undermines unit cohesion and morale. One soldier, for
example, commented that after he came out, he was able
to talk more openly and honestly with others in his
unit, many of whom already suspected that he was gay,
but were unable to mention it, for fear of getting him
in trouble. Of course, he could not mention it either,
and yet, it was there – people knew, but could not talk
about it.
This scenario is not unique to
just one soldier, as it is a theme emerging from several
of my interviews. It appears that it may be the
secrecy – the knowing, but not knowing for sure
preoccupation that may relate to stress and mistrust
that may then lead to the undermining of unit cohesion
and low morale. Indeed, in his book, Modern
Homosexualities, Peter Davies writes that a GLBT
person's "partial disclosure is inherently unstable" (p.
79) and puts social strain on friendships. The best approach,
according to Davies, is when either nobody knows or
everybody knows.
The military's policy is
designed so that nobody knows, but in reality, people do
know; yet, they cannot confirm their knowledge by asking
or telling, and that is what seems to be problematic.
If GLBT servicemembers were allowed to simply disclose
their sexual orientation – get it out in the open, let
everyone talk about it, and then move on – the secrecy
and mistrust could dissipate. The policy suggests that
people in the military cannot handle having an openly
GLBT person in their midst. This would seem to
seriously underestimate the intelligence and abilities
of America’s men and women in uniform.
---------------------
About the Author
Andrew D.
Reichert is a doctoral student in Counseling
Psychology at Texas A&M University. An ordained
minister in The United Methodist Church, he
holds a Master of Science in Educational
Psychology from Texas A&M University and a
Master of Divinity from Duke University. He can
be reached at
AReichert@tamu.edu.
Copyright (c) 2009 Andrew D. Reichert. All rights
reserved |