The Bragg Military Club that denied membership to a same-sex spouse of one of the officers stationed there is under fire from the media. The private club, which is not affiliated with the base at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, denied membership to Ashley Broadway, the 15-year spouse of Army Lieutenant Colonel Heather Mack. Broadway has been with her spouse, and their child Carson every step of the way, including moves to different bases, on in South Korea. 
When the couple were relocated to Fort Bragg, Broadway applied for membership to the Association of Bragg Officers' Spouses. Broadway said, "I thought, 'Here's a chance to make some close friends who would really understand me, and I could get very active in events that help other families like mine. I was excited, really excited, to be a part of this group."
But the Bragg military club denied her application, saying that she doesn't have a military ID card. While opposite sex spouses of military personnel receive ID cards that allow them to access the commissary, use military day care, get on the base and -- join clubs like this one -- the military doesn't legally recognize gay marriage, so those spouses do not get ID cards.
Of course, this cannot be fully blamed upon the military itself, which has been complying with the repeal of don't ask, don't tell. The failure to issue ID cards because of the Defense of Marriage Act is completely the choice of the military of course. However, it seems that those who are currently serving in the military and their husbands and wives do not wish for same sex spouses to be considered equal with opposite sex spouses, particularly those who are members of this club. This makes Broadway sad, "I kept thinking that if these people just met me, they would like me," she said.
Photo: Out Serve Magazine






Comments: 5
The key words right there, & that's where she made her mistake!