U.S. Secretary of Transportation observes Pride Month at Walter Reed

Photo By Harvey Duze | Pride Month "Fireside Chat" event with The Honorable Pete Buttigieg, U.S. Secretary of Transportation and CAPT Kelly Elmore, MC, USN, Chief of Staff at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) on 29 June, 2022 in Clark Auditorium, WRNMMC. (Photographs by Harvey A. Duze – Office of Command Communications)  

UNITED STATES

06.29.2022

Story by Bernard Little 

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg visited Walter Reed National Military Medical Center June 29 for a fireside chat with the Walter Reed Bethesda community in observance of Pride Month.
Pride Month is celebrated during June of each year to honor the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City, which galvanized the gay liberation movement in the United States.
“When I joined the reserves, ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ was still the law of the land. I knew [coming out as gay] was something that could endanger my career, and something I had to keep very much under my hat,” said Buttigieg, the first openly gay Cabinet secretary in U.S. history.
Buttigieg joined the U.S. Navy Reserve in 2009 and served until 2017. He first ran for mayor of his native South Bend, Indiana in 2010 and was elected in November 2011. He deployed to Afghanistan in 2014 while still mayor, taking a seven-month leave from office. He was assigned to the Afghan Threat Finance Cell, and he also served as an armed driver for his unit commander on more than 100 trips into Kabul. He said he did encounter “casual homophobia” during his military service, often in the language used to describe various matters and situations.
“Shortly before I was elected mayor, I knew I shouldn’t enter a job of that level of responsibility without coming out to someone,” Buttigieg said. “I was one of those people who took a very long time in coming out to themselves. I knew if I just told one person that would be how I could cement my relationship with myself. I was a mayor and in some ways I didn’t have to confront how much was missing in my life because the city was a very jealous bride. I was very busy [as mayor], but of course I knew something was missing,” he added.
“To see where we are now and the fact I can be here to have a conversation at a place like this with an audience like this, and the fact that I’m here at all in a job like this [as U.S. transportation secretary], shows me just how far we have come in basically a short amount of time,” Buttigieg said.
“There are so many people now who are still wondering whether they are safe professionally and socially in coming out,” he added. “The journey in terms of acceptance is complicated for a lot of people. We have to guide people to the right place rather than drag them there,” he said.
Buttigieg also discussed “inclusive health care” when asked how he defines the term by WRNMMC Chief of Staff, Navy Capt. (Dr.) Kelly Elmore, who moderated the fireside chat.
Buttigieg explained taking care of people means providing them with holistic care, which “means recognizing [for each individual] what is needed, and what’s going to work for them, medically and socially. We need to honor, recognize and support [those needs],” he said.
He added it’s also important to “[treat] mental health with all the seriousness as physical health. That commitment to inclusion has to be there.” He said this is also the case with those providing care, and decision makers for health care. “Any decision-making body will make better decisions if it is diverse.” He explained this is because a diverse body of individuals brings broader skill sets and experiences to the table to make decisions. In addition, the diverse body should reflect the varied beneficiaries to whom they provide care and serve.
Army Brig. Gen. Jack Davis, WRNMMC director, agreed. He explained one of the pillars of Walter Reed Bethesda’s strategic plan is inclusivity. He said this creates an environment of allowing people to be who they are within a climate of equality.
The general added that near the top of Maslow’s hierarchy is self-actualization, which encompasses achieving one’s full potential. “As the flagship of military medicine, our vision is for everyone in this facility to achieve their full potential. We need all of our team members to be their full optimal selves if we are to carry on our health-care mission, which is to take care of our warriors, both past and present, their families, and frankly, each other.”
Army Lt. Col. (Dr.) Jonathan Ji, a neurologist at WRNMMC, said he appreciates all of the allies of the LGBTQIA+ community. “Thank you for standing with us. Thank you for standing by us. I salute you. It takes courage to do what you do.”
“Courage comes in many forms, but they all have one thing in common – an indomitable human spirit,” Ji said. “I have walked the road paved by the courage of many others who came before me. Approximately 13,600 Department of Defense members were forced out [of uniform] during Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Today would not be possible without the sacrifice, courage, persistence and support of those individuals. I think of them, and I thank them. We have come so far, and we still have so [far] to go.”
Army Col. (Dr.) Jessica Bunin, associate dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the Uniformed Services University, said she has witnessed the progress of the LGBTQIA+ community in the military since signing her first oath of office 30 years ago and serving 22 years on active duty after completing medical school. She explained that for much of her life she has had to shield her identity, which resulted in depression and isolation. “It’s not lost on me that I was just one person among thousands who struggled [with], but the day that depression and isolation lifted was the day that we were able to openly serve in the military. We have far to go, but I believe that it gets better.” She added members of the LGBTQIA+ community are now, for the most part, openly accepted and valued within the military community.
The WRNMMC DEI Council coordinated and sponsored the event.

• Date Taken: 06.29.2022
• Date Posted: 06.30.2022 12:59
• Story ID: 424146
• Location: US