You’ve called the U.S. military one of the most progressive institutions, noting it integrated in 1948.When I joined the Marines, because the mission is the mission, and although “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” homophobia was thick and intense and traumatic for me, at the same time I was finally a part of a team that could not deny me. No matter what they assumed I was doing in my private life, when we showed up to work in those uniforms, you had to make use of me; I had to be included. And that type of inclusion didn’t exist anywhere else in society for me. When I was homeless, I wasn’t offered upwardly mobile jobs.I wasn’t offered career mentorship and training. But when I joined the Marine Corps, I was automatically indoctrinated into a form of meritocracy where I finally had a way to grab onto this ladder and pull myself up.