President Joe Biden Pardons US Veterans Convicted Under Anti-Gay Sex Laws

June 27, Washington DC: 
US President Joe Biden pardoned American veterans found guilty of participating in gay intercourse, a violation of a military regulation that has prohibited the practice for almost 60 years. By rectifying a "historic wrong," Biden's proclamation gives clemency to about 2,000 individuals who were charged between 1951 and 2013.

"Today, I am righting a historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves," Biden stated in a press release. Thousands of L.G.B.T.Q.I.+ service personnel were forcibly removed from the military due to their sexual orientation or gender identity, despite the bravery and tremendous sacrifices they made. The weight of this tremendous injustice has been on some of these courageous Americans for decades, he continued, after they were tried in a court-martial.

Karine Jeane-Pierre, press secretary for the White House, referred to this development as "righting a historic wrong" and emphasized that every service member of the United States deserved to feel secure and valued. The safety and dignity of every service member is a fundamental human right. She shared on X the news that the president had pardoned numerous LGBTQI+ service men who had been wrongfully condemned due to their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, a federal statute, making it a criminal to engage in "unnatural carnal copulation with another person of the same or opposite sex," even with mutual consent. The proclamation addressed accusations brought under this provision. According to the NYT, the section of the statute that prohibited consensual sodomy was repealed in 2013 by a vote of Congress.

During his administration, Mr. Biden has primarily pardoned nonviolent drug offenders using his mercy powers. Additionally, as part of his administration's larger endeavor to tackle racial inequities in drug sentencing, he has pardoned individuals for marijuana use and possession on federal lands. In his comments, Biden emphasized that Wednesday's proclamation was "about dignity, decency and ensuring the culture of our armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation."