Introduced first as a policy for the military, in September, 1993, a law called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." directed people to keep their sexuality hidden if they intended to stay in military careers.Military expression is an area of military law pertaining to the United States military that relates to the free speech rights of its service members.[1] While "military free speech" was the term used during the Vietnam War era, "military expression" has become a niche area of military law since 2001.[2][not in citation given] Besides media references relating to specific cases, the term was used at military whistleblower committee hearings with members of the United States House of Representatives and Senate on May 14, 2008. Transcripts of the hearings show that attorney Mike Lebowitz was identified as testifying as a legal expert in "military expression".[3][full citation needed] That hearing also included references by U.S. Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) who also referred to the area of law as "military expression".[further explanation needed]
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The rights of military members and civilians on a military installation can vary significantly from your basic Bill of Rights protections. In some respects, the military is legally obligated to provide additional protections to military members suspected of criminal wrongdoing. But in other respects, even basic rights against unreasonable searches and seizures are virtually non-existent. I’ll examine many of the basic rules and rights in a military context.
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While the civilian population of the United States is afforded the right to free expression under the First Amendment, the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed the notion that service members have a reduced level of free speech.[4] While the Court acknowledged that service members do have First Amendment rights, these rights are limited.
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