Serving in Silence
New York: Viking, 1994. First Edition. First Printing [stated]. Hardcover. ix, [3], 308 pages. Illustrations. Inscribed by the author. DJ has slight wear and soiling. Margarethe "Grethe" Cammermeyer (born March 24, 1942) served as a colonel in the Washington National Guard and became a gay rights activist. Born in Oslo, Norway, she became a United States citizen in 1960. In 1961 she joined the Army Nurse Corps. She received a B.S. in Nursing in 1963. At the University of Washington School of Nursing, she earned a master's degree in 1976 and a Ph.D. in 1991. In 1989, during a routine security clearance interview, she disclosed that she is a lesbian. The National Guard began military discharge proceedings against her. On June 11, 1992, she was honorably discharged. Cammermeyer filed a lawsuit against the decision in civil court. In June 1994, Judge Thomas Zilly of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington ruled that her discharge and the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military were unconstitutional. She returned to the National Guard and served as one of the few openly gay or lesbian people in the U.S. military while the "don't ask don't tell" policy was in effect, until her retirement in 1997. A television movie about Cammermeyer's story, Serving in Silence, was made in 1995, with Glenn Close starring as Cammermeyer. Its content was largely taken from Cammermeyer's autobiography of the same name. In June 2010, she was appointed to the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, a committee which is appointed by the United States Secretary of Defense and which reports to the United States Department of Defense. The author was a Vietnam nurse, decorated officer, mother of four, and the highest-ranking officer to challenge the military's antigay policy. A major film was later made based on her experiences. Her goal to become Chief Nurse of the entire National Guard was abruptly ended in 1992 by her discharge based on sexual orientation. The distinguished nurse, mother, war hero--and highest ranking officer to challenge the military's anti-gay policy--speaks out about her life in the armed forces and her search for self. Colonel Cammermeyer's dismissal from the U.S. Army has stirred debate all the way to the Presidency; now she writes of her decision to challenge official policy on homosexuality. Condition: Very good / Very good.
Keywords: Homosexuals, National Guard, Army Nurse, Human Rights, Vietnam War, Women in Military, Gay Marriage, Discrimination, Lesbian, Sexual Orientation, Female Soldiers, Human Rights, Divorce
ISBN: 0670851671
[Book #42208]
Price: $45.00