"Obama Names First Openly Gay Secretary of Army" by Lisl Wangermann 1st Period

Helene Cooper's article "Obama Names First Openly Gay Secretary of Army" was published by the New York Times on September 18th, 2015. Eric Fanning, an openly gay male, has been nominated by the White House for the position of Secretary of the Army. A graduate of Dartmouth, Fanning's many positions within the Defense Department include Air Force under secretary, deputy under secretary of the Navy, and deputy chief management officer of the Navy. Additionally, he was Ashton B. Carter's, the previous Secretary of the Army, chief of staff. This appointment is not surprising, because in addition to his numerous qualifications, he is also well liked in the Pentagon.

I think that it is amazing that finally, members of the LGBT+ community are getting jobs that they deserve but have been denied for so many years because of their sexuality. Fanning is very clearly the right person for this job, and this appointment confirms the White House's support of LGBT+ rights. This is really amazing, considering that only a couple of years ago, Don't Ask, Don't Tell was still a law. This event reminds me of similar historical events concerning the rights of minorities, like the appointment of Thurgood Marshall, the first African American supreme court justice. Hopefully, this event boosts the trend of equal rights for all.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/19/us/eric-fanning-civilian-adviser-named-secretary-of-the-army.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news