Bodon, outed by a fellow soldier, says he would consider going back to the Army

KINGSTON – The president of the Hudson Valley LGBTQ Center in Kingston suppports resident Obama’s call for an end to the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy toward gays in the military.

He made his call for a change in the policy during his state of the union address. And Virginia Apuzzo, head of the LGBTQ Center, said Thursday that it is long overdue.

“I lament the fact that him pushing this now doesn’t help the many, many service personnel who are gay or lesbian who have been dismissed from the service,” she said.

One such person is Nathanael Bodon of Beacon, who was serving in Iraq when his superiors found out he was gay and discharged him late last year.

He is writing a book, Half Way Out: A Survivor’s Guide to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

He wants the general public to learn more about the policy. “There is a large population that is affected by it; I don’t think it shows up on their radar enough for them to go out of their way or even get loud about it, have an opinion about it.”

Despite being discharged, Bodon told MidHudsonNews.com if the rule was changed, he would consider returning to the Army.