The Defense Department hosted its first ever Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Pride Month event since the repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.” Pentagon General Counsel Jeh Johnson, who co-chaired the Pentagon’s review of how to implement the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” delivered the keynote address. His remarks were followed by a panel discussion on the value of diversity in the military.
This month, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta issued the department's first LGBT Pride Month message in a video that praised gay and lesbian service members and addressed his own pride at the way the military had implemented repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” over the past nine months.