Pop singer Lady Gaga took to the web Friday, telling Congress “to do your job” – calling specifically on Sens. John McCain, Mitch McConnell, James Inhoffe, and Jeff Sessions to vote on the defense authorization bill, which includes authorization to repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ after a Pentagon review. Republicans have been blocking the bill from reaching the Senate floor. ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’, is the law that was created in 1993 and bans openly gay, lesbian and bisexual people from serving in the military.
In the almost 8-minute video posted on her website, the artist asks her fans to call their representatives and let their voice be heard: “Our fight is a continuum of the ever present equal rights movement, everyday we fight to abolish laws that harbor hatred and discrimination against all people, laws that infringe on our civil liberties,” she says.
The singer, who in recent days has taken to her twitter account engaging Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to schedule a vote to repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,” asks the senators these questions: “Senators when you are sending our men and women into war, sending our wives, husbands, sons, and daughters into combat, will you honor their service? Will you support repealing this law on Tuesday and pledge to them that no American’s life is more valuable than another?”
Gaga herself also makes an unsuccessful attempt to reach her own senators, New York Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, but left this on camera message: “I am calling to ask the senator to vote with senators Harry Reid and Carl Levin to repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ and to oppose John McCain’s shameless filibuster. We need to do this for our gay and lesbian soldiers, and finally repeal ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.'”
Gillibrand later posted her response via Twitter “@ladygaga Thx for calling. I couldn’t agree more and am helping lead the fight to repeal DADT. Do you have a moment to talk later today?”
Gaga tweeted back, “@ChuckSchumer @SenGillibrand Thank you for responding, it means so much that you support us on this issue. Let’s get this passed. Talk monday?”
Lady Gaga who was escorted by four soldiers who have been affected by ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ to the MTV Video Music Awards this year, also shares that she was shocked to hear how much the soldiers who had been discharged missed serving their country. She tells congress, “We are not asking you to agree with or approve the moral implications of homosexuality, we are asking you to do your job, to protect the constitution.”
