WASHINGTON – Grassroots activists will gather on Capitol Hill on Thursday, to highlight the growing support for the repeal of the military’s controversial “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy.

More than 300 people are expected to attend the press conference at noon at the House of Representatives Triangle.

Speakers will include:

_ U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, an Iraq veteran and lead sponsor of the bill to repeal DADT.

_ Eric Alva, a former Marine staff sergeant who was the first U.S. soldier wounded in the Iraq and is now a spokesman on DADT for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC).

_ Kayla Williams, a straight OIF veteran and former Army Arabic linguist who is the author of the “Love My Rifle More Than You: Young and Female in the U.S. Army.”

_ Jarrod Chlapowski, a former U.S. Army Korean linguist who opted to not re-enlist because of DADT and is a public policy advocate for HRC.

_ Joe Solmonese, president of Human Rights Campaign.

Murphy, a former paratrooper in the Army's elite 82nd Airborne Division, is the lead sponsor of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act (HR 1283), the House bill to repeal the DADT law. Sen. Joe Lieberman introduced a Senate bill to repeal DADT earlier today.

More than 13,500 Americans have been denied the ability to serve – including more than 800 specialists with vital skills such as Arabic linguists.

Military leaders, including Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen, recognize that DADT is a failed law and support its repeal. Dick Cheney, former vice president and former defense secretary, recently came out for repeal by stating, “When the chiefs come forward and say, ‘We think we can do it,’ then it strikes me as it’s time to reconsider the policy, and I think Admiral Mullen said that.”

The event is timed with HRC’s annual spring Lobby Day.

Last week, HRC launched a national action alert and announced details of its ongoing campaign to repeal the law that hurts military readiness and national security, while putting American soldiers fighting overseas at risk. Focusing on key states where congressional support for repeal is critical, HRC dispatched field staff to five states – Florida, Indiana, Nebraska, Virginia and West Virginia, with other states to follow in the months ahead.

HRC is also asking members and supporters to sign up and to join the growing network of supporters to repeal DADT. To learn more, visit www.hrc.org/RepealDADT.

About HRC
The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.