Don't Ask, Don't Tell - a happening gayme
a silent, dishonorable, and potentially deadly game to remain on active duty
premise
- a game board with dice and cards will be presented to a group of players
- the challenge is to move a gay servicemember through a career from enlistment to retirement
- game spaces have landmines representing the challenges of serving under the military policy of Don't Ask, Don't Tell
- each move requires players to draw a Formation card
- each formation card informs the player of a real-life situation of an American gay servicemember
- the player then evaluates the possible choices available to a gay servicemember
- depending on the selected choice, the player will select a Disciplinary Action card to learn the consequences of their decision
- all information presented int the game will be included in my Unit 4 paper
- the game creates an opportunity to inform those unfamiliar with military life and/or DADT and to evaluate the policy, its efficacy, and the impact on servicemembers both straight and gay
potential Formation Cards
- talk about your weekend with coworkers
- choose who to talk to about personal problems
- choose the personal items you can place on your desk
- choose the personal items you take with you when you deploy to a war zone
- choose the bumper sticker(s) you place on your personal vehicle
- listen to homophobic remarks from your coworkers
- receive unsolicited advances from someone of the opposite sex in front of your peers
- explain why you've never been married - you're 38 years old
- fill out benefits paperwork
- go to a social work event
- talk to your partner on the phone from a war zone
- fill out emergency contact information
- fill out a will
- fill out military insurance beneficiary forms
- seek legal advice from the base legal office
- talk to a base mental health counselor about relationship problems
- talk to your base doctor about sexual health issues
- deploy to a war zone with other nations that allow open service by gays
- be seen in public with a gay friend by coworkers
- be seen at a local gay-owned business by coworkers
- be seen at a gay pride parade by coworkers
- be seen at a gay bar by coworkers
- not have sex for the duration of your military career
- not have a meaningful, long-term relationship for the duration of your military
- respond to a news report about DADT with coworkers
- complete Pentagon survey regarding open service of homosexuals in the military
- write a letter to the editor about DADT and include your name
- write a letter to your lawmaker about DADT and include your name
- choose who you invite to your retirement ceremony
- choose where to hold your retirement ceremony
- publicly thank those who mean the most to you at your retirement ceremony
- protest Don't Ask, Don't Tell while on active duty
- choose the mental / physical problems you'll suffer while serving under DADT for 20 years
- accept less pay when deployed than your married coworkers
- accept less pay for housing than your married coworkers
- watch your coworkers move into base housing with their spouses
- move your family's belongings using single servicemember (vice married) weight allowance for household goods
- listen to your coworkers talk about their spouses participating in spouse support events
- move to another country with your partner (without any military support for your partner)
- find a job for your partner in another country (without military support for your partner)
- find child care in another country for your partner's biological children (without military support)
- leave your partner behind while you're stationed overseas (because the host country doesn't grant a visa to your partner)
potential Disciplinary Action cards
- serve on active duty while constantly fearing the loss of your career
- your doctor / chaplain / psychologist / lawyer / supervisor / co-worker / friend / ex-lover / dorm roommate turns you in for admitted homosexuality
- discharged from military two years before your retirement; all retirement benefits lost
- dishonorable discharge: loss of all benefits, future employment ramifications for life
- general discharge: no veteran benefits
- honorable discharge: full veteran benefits
- whisper campaign ruins your reputation
- lose friendships / isolated from peers
- family notified, they disown you
- tires slashed, "homosexual freak" scratched into the side of your car
- shunned at base church by parishioners and pastor
- lose job and dishonorable discharge means you're now homeless and without a car
- passed over for promotion
- demoted and arbitrarily punished
- suffer ulcers, anxiety disorder, and depression from DADT-induced stress
- commit suicide due to social isolation
- lose your security clearance, no longer able to do your job
- reassigned to menial duties
- your dorm room is ran sacked while you're at work during a "safety" inspection
- you're brutally beaten to death by your roommate (Barry Winchell)
- co-workers sabotage your workplace causing deadly accident (Clayton Hartwig)
- recruiter must find replacement for discharged servicemember (find stats)
- service branch must spend time, tens of thousands of dollars to retrain, retain, and replace discharged servicemember (find stats)
- since your office must do all the work of the discharged servicemember, you fall behind and do not translate an Al Qaeda message planning an attack (link)
- - -
DADT Jeopardy or Bingo
same idea as above but instead use a Jeopardy game board to score a contestant's knowledge of DADT
Comments (3)
Ehle so fly said
at 1:25 pm on Nov 10, 2010
This looks like a good idea so far, but I am a little confused.. fill me in :)
Andrea said
at 6:33 pm on Nov 13, 2010
Im so glad you actually made a board game! It'd be wicked cool if we spent a day and played this in class...I think it would really show a lot of people the horrific consequences of DADT
Boda said
at 10:17 am on Nov 17, 2010
Well... I do need to do a test run before it goes "public". I'll ask Prof Conner if he's got time in the schedule for it. Thanks for the enthusiasm - as always :-)
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