Rhode Island & New York restore military benefits to LGBTQ veterans

U.S. Naval Forces Central Command’s (NAVCENT) Diversity Committee share cake and cup cakes at a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month observance at NAVCENT Headquarters (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Christina Brewer)

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D) and Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo (D) both recently signed legislation that will restore state military benefits to veterans who were dishonorably discharged due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. Cuomo signed the Restoration of Honor Act into law yesterday and Raimondo signed a similar bill last Friday.

While the new laws won’t allow dishonorably discharged LGBTQ veterans to regain access to federal military benefits, they at least establish a process for such veterans to upgrade their discharge status and apply with the federal government to have their records upgraded, according to the Modern Military Association of America.

Related: The Trump administration started by going after LGBT families. Now it’s some military families.

An estimated 100,000 LGBTQ soldiers have been discharged from the start of World War II to the 2011 repeal of the military’s 1993 “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” ban on out queer soldiers.

While Rhode Island’s bill allows discharged soldiers to access benefits — like residing within the Rhode Island Veterans Home and being buried at the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Exeter — New York’s bill goes further by also…

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