Peace Corps Send Mixed Messages

For the third year in a row, Peace Corps Director, Gaddi Vasquez, designated June as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month at Peace Corps. He has done this in a political environment where many federal agencies have not done this. Again we congratulate him for his recognition of our place in the Peace Corps family and his political courage. The Director’s message sent on June 8 follows:

To: All Peace Corps Staff
From: Gaddi Vasquez, Director
Subject: Gay and Lesbian Pride Month

I am pleased to designate June 2004 as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month at Peace Corps.
Gay and Lesbian Pride Month is celebrated throughout the United States during the month of June. This year marks the 35th anniversary of the historic Stonewall Rebellion as a major turning point in civil rights for gay and lesbian Americans. This commemoration provides Americans with the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the important contributions lesbian and gay Americans have made to our society.

Peace Corps has a long history of recognizing and celebrating diversity as one of the strengths among its Volunteers and staff worldwide. Creating a work environment where each employee and Volunteer is valued and afforded mutual respect, regardless of their sexual orientation, is a key element of the Peace Corps organizational culture.

The fulfillment of the Peace Corps’ mission to foster greater understanding among the world’s citizens requires that we adhere to the highest standards with respect to equal opportunity for all Volunteers, employees and applicants. Recognizing the talent, energy, motivation and creativity of each person contributes to the cause of world peace and improved understanding.

During this month, I encourage all employees to participate in the many activities at the Peace Corps and in your communities that celebrate the contributions and achievements of gay and lesbian Americans.
Married Volunteers – Only a Man and a Woman.

Married Volunteers – Only a Man and a Woman

Shortly before same sex marriages commenced in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in May, the Peace Corps Manual was amended defining married couples going into the Peace Corps as volunteers as a “man and a woman.” In the past, married couples were identified according to the laws of a particular state. In some states “common law” marriages are recognized, often defining common law marriages as those where the couple have lived together as husband and wife for a least seven years. This provision defining marriage according to State law seemed by some to open the door for same sex couples married in Massachusetts to apply to Peace Corps as a married couple. Following is the communication to Peace Corps staff that clarifies the issue, and of course excludes same sex couples from qualifying as married for purposes of Peace Corps placement. Peace Corps is not alone. No other federal agency will accept married same sex couples as married. But I wish Peace Corps had not pushed this in our face. Read on...

Section 201 of the Peace Corps Manual, 22 C.F.R. § 305.2(f), provides that only married couples who are “husband and wife” can apply to be placed together abroad. The Defense of Marriage Act, 1 U.S.C. § 7 (1996), defines “marriage” for federal administrative bureaus and agencies as a union between a man and a woman. This Act precludes a federal agency like the Peace Corps from implementing the recent Massachusetts Supreme Court decision creating same-sex civil marriages in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts Supreme Court recognized the preclusive force of the Act in its February 2003 opinion.

By establishing a federal definition of marriage which excludes same-sex couples, the Peace Corps does not recognize the “marriage” of a same-sex couples for purposes of legal eligibility, or treat same-sex couples as “married” under Section 201 of the Manual. The following language in the Peace Corps Guide to Recruitment (2003) and Guide to Placement (2001) is inconsistent with regards to this policy, and will be amended.
“Recruiters should accept an application from any couple who has a recognized marriage under the laws of their state of residence.”

In accordance with the aforementioned, “any couple” must be comprised of a man and woman.