Recently New York legalized same sex marriage signaling a seismic shift in the quest for gay couples to gain state recognition of their unions. As important as that is, a larger shift is happening as the Pentagon implements policies to allow gays to serve openly in the armed services beginning Sept. 20, 2011. The military leader most responsible for the shift toward diversity and fairness is Admiral Michael Glenn Mullen.
On Oct. 1 Mullen will step down as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retire from the U.S. military. His record of supporting diversity will not go unnoticed by those who served with him during Mullen’s 43 years in the military, nor by history.