Servicemembers United, the nation's largest organization of gay and lesbian troops and veterans, announced that it has obtained documents showing that the total official number of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ( DADT ) discharges for fiscal year 2010 was 261.
The annual fiscal year DADT discharge statistic combines the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Defense, which was 250, with the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Homeland Security for the Coast Guard, which was 11.
"While this latest official discharge number represents an all-time annual low, it is still unusually high considering that the secretary of defense issued a directive half-way through the fiscal year to make it much harder for military units to discharge troops under 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" said Alexander Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United. For the most comprehensive collection of polling data, discharge statistics, academic works, legislative and congressional material, and more, visit www.DADTArchive.org .
