The next stage in the fight for equality for LGBT servicemembers began last week.
Eight married same-sex couples, represented by Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, filed suit against the federal government Oct. 27, challenging the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act.
The suit, which names as defendants Attorney General Eric Holder, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shineski, centers on the couples’ inability to access the same benefits from the military for their spouses as heterosexual married servicemembers.
Among the benefits are medical and dental insurance, visitation rights in military hospitals and travel allowances.
“This case is about one thing, plain and simple. It’s about justice for gay and lesbian servicemembers and their families in our armed forces rendering the same military services, making the same sacrifices and taking the same risks to keep our nation secure at home and abroad,” said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of SLDN. “These couples are in long-term, committed and legally recognized marriages, and the military should not be forced to turn its back on them because the federal government refused to recognize their families.”
DOMA defines marriage as being between one man and one woman and thus prevents federal agencies from recognizing legal same-sex marriages.
The suit was filed in the District of Massachusetts, the same court that ruled a section of DOMA unconstitutional, a ruling currently under appeal by the House Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group.
It is unclear if the federal government, which has said it would no longer defend DOMA in court, will contest the suit.
The day after the suit was filed, DOD announced 14 benefits that will available to servicemembers regardless of sexual orientation, including casualty notification, escorts when a servicemember is killed or missing and active-duty death benefits.
In a statement last week, DOD also said it was “engaged in a careful and deliberate review of the possibility of extending eligibility for benefits, when legally permitted, to other individuals, including same-sex partners.”
The lawsuit comes one month after the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which banned openly LGBT servicemembers.
The plaintiffs have served in the Army, Navy, Air Force and National Guard.
The lead plaintiff is Maj. Shannon McLaughlin, a Judge Advocate General with the Massachusetts National Guard who is married to her partner of three years in Massachusetts. The couple is raising 10-month-old twins.