Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

U.S. Senate confirms gay man, Eric Fanning, for Secretary of Army
by Lisa Keen
2016-05-18

This article shared 1525 times since Wed May 18, 2016
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed the nomination of an openly gay man to serve as Secretary of the U.S. Army —the first openly gay person to serve as the head of any military branch.

The confirmation of Eric Fanning, by voice vote, came very quickly Tuesday after U.S. Senator Pat Roberts ( R-Kansas ) lifted a hold he had put on the nomination. In a statement Tuesday, Roberts said Fanning "has always had my support for this position" but said he had placed a hold on the nomination in an effort to stop the Obama administration from moving Guantanamo Bay prisoners to Fort Leavenworth.

"I believe Eric Fanning will be a tremendous leader for the Army," said Roberts.

Fanning, 47 and a native of Michigan, will take over the reins from Acting Secretary of the Army Patrick Murphy. Murphy, a veteran of the Iraq War and a former member of the U.S. House, helped lead the push in Congress to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" in 2010.

No one questioned Fanning's qualifications to serve as Secretary. He held a series of leadership positions at the Pentagon since 2009, including positions in the departments of the Air Force, Navy, and Army. Last year, he also served as a special assistant to newly installed Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. He also served on the staff of the House Armed Services Committee and served as deputy director of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. During the Clinton administration, Fanning served as an associate director of political affairs at the White House.

President Obama nominated Fanning to replace retiring Secretary John McHugh last September. Fanning served as Acting Secretary when McHugh left but stepped aside in January while his nomination was pending.

"Eric's sexual orientation has absolutely no bearing on his ability to do this job; nor was it the reason for his nomination. But this milestone of having an openly gay individual in this high level position within the Department of Defense will help to continue to set a tone of understanding and respect for the LGBT community throughout the armed services," said Matt Thorn, executive director of the LGBT military support group OutServe-SLDN.

Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin also applauded Fanning's confirmation, saying it was "a demonstration of the continued progress towards fairness and equality in our nation's armed forces."

Fanning was a board member of the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund from 2004 to 2007. The group helps openly LGBT people seek elective office and appointments within the federal government.

As Defense Secretary Ashton Carter's chief of staff last June, Fanning said he felt like he was the only gay man at the Pentagon when he came out as gay in 1993, the year then President Bill Clinton signed the ban on gays in the military into law.

"It's gone from tolerance to acceptance to embrace," said Fanning, according to a Defense Department press release on Fanning's remarks to a group of employees at the Defense Intelligence Agency's Pride Month event. "We have this community of support whenever we try to do anything or put ourselves forward."

While the Secretary position is a civilian one, Fanning's nomination comes just six years after Congress repealed a long-standing ban on openly gay people serving in the military. It is perhaps ironic, too, that one of Fanning's biggest advocates in the Senate —Senator John McCain ( R-Ariz. )—had steadfastly opposed repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

McCain criticized the hold on Fanning last month, saying, "Mr. Fanning is eminently qualified to assume that role of Secretary of the Army." He urged Roberts to drop his hold on the nomination.

"All I can say," said McCain, April 28, on the floor of the Senate, "is that the U.S. Army needs this man, Mr. Eric Fanning's leadership."

Fanning's confirmation vote Tuesday was taken by unanimous consent, a procedure that allows expedited approval of a matter without debate.

© 2016 Keen News Service. All rights reserved.


This article shared 1525 times since Wed May 18, 2016
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

WORLD Israeli reservist, man detained, Ghana bill, medic denied honor 2024-03-08
- Hanania Ben-Shimon—the gay Israel Defense Forces reservist who was wounded as he killed one of the terrorists in the attack at the A-Za'ayem checkpoint near Ma'ale Adumim recently—published a post in which he pleaded that his ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Chuck Schumer, anti-marriage bill, drag event back on, military doctor 2024-02-23
- U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced his support for the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA)—and, as a result, several LGBTQ+-advocacy organizations dropped their opposition to it, The Hill ...


Gay News

Col. Jennifer Pritzker comments on military museum move 2024-02-13
- Local transgender philanthropist Col. Jennifer Pritzker commented to Windy City Times about the impending move of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library (PMML), which she founded in 2003, to Wisconsin. "At the end of the day, ...


Gay News

Pritzker Military Library to close in July, move to Wisconsin 2024-02-08
- On Feb. 7, the Pritzker Military Museum & Library announced that it is closing its downtown Chicago location on July 27 and moving to an archives center in Wisconsin later this year, according to The Chicago ...


Gay News

PASSAGES Paris Johnson 2023-12-29
- Paris Johnson, 29, of Chicago's West Loop neighborhood, passed away unexpectedly Nov. 28. He would have celebrated his 30th birthday Dec. 20. Born into a military family in Sacramento, California, Paris moved often in his youth, ...


Gay News

NATIONAL Women's college, banned books, military initiative, Oregon 2023-12-29
- After backlash regarding a decision to update its anti-discrimination policy and open enrollment to some transgender applicants, a Catholic women's college in Indiana will return to its previous admission policy, per The National Catholic Reporter. In ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Music awards, military film, Tom of Finland, Yo-Yo Ma, 'Harley Quinn' 2023-11-17
Video below - Brothers Osborne—a duo that includes gay brother TJ Osborne—won Vocal Duo of the Year for the sixth time at the recent CMA Awards, per a media release. Backstage, TJ told reporters, "I did not expect us ...


Gay News

AVER celebrates LGBTQ+ veterans at annual Veterans Day dinner 2023-11-12
- Writer and historian Owen Keehnen was keynote speaker at the the American Veterans for Equal Rights (AVER) Chicago Chapter's 32nd annual LGBTQ Veterans Day Banquet held on Veterans Day at Ann Sather restaurant on Belmont. Keehnen ...


Gay News

South Korean court upholds military 'sodomy law' 2023-10-28
- For the fourth time, South Korea's constitutional court has upheld two anti-LGBTQ+ laws—including the country's notorious military "sodomy law," The Guardian reported. By a vote of five to four, the court confirmed the constitutionality of ar ...


Gay News

WORLD Couple's win, attack in Beirut, German military, gay ski week 2023-09-08
- In Strasbourg, France, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Bulgaria violated the rights of a same-sex couple (Darina Koilova and Lili Babulkova) by not recognizing their marriage abroad, RFE/RL reported. Rights groups lauded the ...


Gay News

'We've had a ball': Prominent activists Jim Darby and Patrick Bova celebrate 60th anniversary 2023-09-07
- One of the first couples to be legally married in Illinois is celebrating their 60th anniversary this year. Jim Darby and Patrick Bova fell in love decades before they became the lead plaintiffs in Lambda Legal's ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Military drama, Janelle Monae, Conan Gray, Dylan Mulvaney, Whoopi 2023-08-31
- The LGBTQ+ military drama Eismayer (from Dark Star Pictures and Golden Girls Film) will be out in theaters on Oct. 6, and on DVD and Digital on Oct. 10, per a press release. The plot is ...


Gay News

FY2024 National Defense Authorization Act would undercut equality, Modern Military Assoc of America comments 2023-07-14
--From a press release - Washington D.C. - Anti-equality House members are using the FY2024 National Defense Authorization Act to pass dangerous amendments targeting healthcare, gender-affirming care, education, and LGBTQ+ friendly services and resources. The ...


Gay News

WORLD Pride celebrations, puberty blockers, British military, killer sentenced 2023-06-16
- Gay Pride Buenos Aires is slated to take place Oct. 27-Nov. 4, according to GayTravel4U.com. More than 30 organizations and groups host activities that will begin a week before the parade (which is on Nov. 4). ...


Gay News

VIEWPOINT War in the 21st Century: mercenaries, private military companies, private armies 2023-05-20
- In 2022, $407 billion of the Pentagon budget—representing half of that year's funding —were obligated to private contractors, of which a significant number were Private Military Companies (PMCs) involved in ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.