As a member of the Congressional Equality Caucus and the son of a World War II veteran, Congressman Ted Deutch (FL-21) signed on as an original cosponsor of H.R. 2839, the Restore Honor to Service Members Act.

This bill would enable the Secretary of Defense to rectify discriminatory actions taken on members of the military who were discharged with characterizations other than “honorable” because of their perceived or actual sexual orientation. The characterization of these service members’ discharges would be changed if, upon a thorough review of their case, there was no misconduct and the nature of their original discharge was based on Don’t Ask Don’t Tell or a similar prior policy.

This bill would restore honor to the estimated 100,000 service men and women that were discharged between World War II and September 2011 because of their sexual orientation. The service of American men and women in uniform should be appreciated, recognized, and respected, regardless of one's sexual orientation or gender identity.

To read more about H.R. 2839, click here.