Editing Alan G. Rogers

{{short description|United States Army officer}}{{Delete}}{{Infobox military person
|name             = Alan Greg Rogers
|image            = Major Alan Greg Rogers.jpg
|caption          =
|birth_date             = {{birth date|1967|9|21}}
|death_date             = {{death date and age|2008|1|27|1967|9|21}}
|birth_place     =
|death_place     = [[Baghdad]], [[Iraq]]
|placeofburial    = [[Arlington National Cemetery]]
|placeofburial_label= Place of burial
|allegiance       = [[United States|United States of America]]
|branch           = [[United States Army]]
|serviceyears     = 1990–2008
|rank             = [[Major (rank)|Major]]
|unit             = [[Military transition team|Military Transition Team]], [[1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division (United States)]], [[Fort Riley]], [[Kansas]]
|battles          = [[Iraq War|Operation Iraqi Freedom]]
|awards           = [[Bronze Star Medal|Bronze Star]] (2)<br/>[[Purple Heart]]
|laterwork        = [http://www.aver.us American Veterans for Equal Rights] (AVER)
}}
'''Alan Greg Rogers''' (September 21, 1967 – January 27, 2008) was an ordained pastor, a U.S. Army Major and [[Intelligence Officer]], a [[civil rights]] [[activist]] in the [[gay]], [[lesbian]] and [[bisexual]] military community and the first known gay combat fatality of Operation Iraqi Freedom.<ref name="aver">{{citation|first=Denny |last=Meyer |url=http://www.aver.us/index.php |title=American Veterans for Equal Rights mourns loss of true soldier and LGBT advocate in Iraq |periodical=Forward Observer |date=April 7, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-26 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070731123316/http://www.aver.us/index.php |archive-date=2007-07-31 }}</ref><ref name="ajohnson">{{citation|first=Aidan |last=Johnson |url=http://ago.mobile.globeandmail.com/generated/archive/RTGAM/html/20080411/wcoalpha12.html |title=Being gay's compatible with being 'A' |periodical=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=April 11, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-23 }}{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref><ref name="ralls">{{citation |first=Steve |last=Ralls |url= http://www.bilerico.com/2008/03/remembering_alan_rogers.php |title=Remembering Alan Rogers |periodical=The Bilerico Project |date=March 30, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref> The subsequent coverage of his death in the media sparked a debate over the effect of the military's "[[DADT|Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell]]" (DADT) policy and what information should be included in the biography of a gay military person [[killed in action]].{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}

==Early life and education==
At the age of 3, Rogers was [[adopted]] by George and Genny Rogers and was their only child. In 1977, the Rogers family moved from [[New York City]] to [[Hampton, Florida]], near [[Gainesville, Florida|Gainesville]]. Rogers attended Hampton Elementary School, and ultimately graduated from Bradford County High School in [[Starke, Florida]], in 1985. Rogers joined Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church in Lincoln City, [[Florida]], and was ordained a pastor as a young man. While in high school, Rogers was commander of the [[Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps]] program and elected by his classmates as the "most intellectual."<ref name="gsun">{{citation |first=Karen |last=Voyles |url= http://www.gainesville.com/article/20080207/NEWS/802070317/1002/NEWS |title=One final homecoming |periodical=[[Gainesville Sun]] |date=February 7, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref>

==Military career and adult life==
[[File:Agrogers-photo-02.jpg|thumb|left|Department of Defense photograph of Alan G. Rogers]]
After high school, Rogers joined the [[Reserve Officers' Training Corps]] program at the [[University of Florida]] and then accepted a [[Commissioned officer|commission]] in the [[United States Army]] upon graduation with a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in [[religion]] in 1995. Rogers later completed a [[Master of Arts]] degree in [[Organizational leadership|organizational management]] from the [[University of Phoenix]] through [[distance learning]].<ref name="gsun"/>
Rogers's father, George, died of a [[heart attack]] in 2000, and his mother, Genny, died of [[kidney]]-related problems two weeks later. Rogers preached at his mother's funeral.<ref name="gsun"/>
[[File:Alan G Rogers AVER.jpg|thumb|right|Alan G. Rogers receiving award at AVER, January 16, 2005.]] In 2001, Rogers commanded a military intelligence company based out of Waegwan, South Korea. During his tenure as company commander, Rogers emphasized unit morale and cohesiveness, often organizing company wide get togethers and functions.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}

In 2004, Rogers moved to [[Washington, D.C.]] and, in 2005, earned a [[Master of Public Policy]] degree from [[Georgetown University]]. Only 25 Army officers were accepted into the program.<ref name="gsun"/> Rogers's thesis adviser was Mark Nadel, who described Rogers as "an officer with leadership qualities that made him think, 'This is a guy I'm going to hear from in 10 years, and he's going to be a general.'"<ref name="stgeorge">{{citation |first=Donna |last=St. George |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/21/AR2008032103036.html |title=Army Officer Remembered as Hero Army Officer Remembered as Hero |periodical=[[The Washington Post]] |date=March 22, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref> Rogers's thesis examined how the US military's DADT policy affected recruitment and retention for military officers.<ref name="cjohnson">{{citation|first=Chris |last=Johnson |url=http://www.washingtonblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17404 |title=Media, military kept soldier in closet after death |periodical=[[Washington Blade]] |date=March 27, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080408163049/http://washingtonblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17404 |archive-date=2008-04-08 }}</ref> In recognition of his achievements at Georgetown, Rogers gained an internship at the Pentagon serving the deputy secretary of defense, [[Gordon R. England]].<ref name="gsun"/>

Beginning in October 2004, Rogers served as Treasurer of the Washington, D.C. chapter of the American Veterans for Equal Rights (AVER).<ref name="cjohnson"/> On January 16, 2005, Rogers received an award from the organization for his service at a ceremony held at Dupont Grill.  Rogers also attended events supporting the [[Servicemembers Legal Defense Network]] (SLDN), which works to end the DADT policy.<ref name="sldn">{{citation |first=Aubrey |last=Sarvis |url= http://freedomtoserve.blogspot.com/2008/03/american-hero-alan-rogers-one-of-4000.html |title=An American Hero, Alan Rogers, One of the 4,000 |periodical=The Front Lines: SLDN News & Updates |date=March 29, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref>

Rogers expressed his opinion on the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy in his Master's thesis, written in 2005 shortly before he was deployed to Iraq and reportedly killed by an improvised explosive device (IED) while on foot patrol: "Today’s current policy on gays in the military seems to rest on many faulty assumptions – namely that homosexuals will jeopardize unit cohesiveness. My research has been unable to justify that position and has found that the opposite is more true. Denying service members the right to serve freely and openly violates basic dignity and respect of the human experience and puts our national security at risk."<ref name="rogersthesis">{{citation|first=Alan G. |last=Rogers |url=http://home.comcast.net/~rpilaud/DADT%20Policy%20Analysis%20Alan%20Rogers.pdf |title=Policy Management Project - Analysis of Department of Defense "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" |periodical=Georgetown University Master Policy Management (MPM) Capstone |date=May 6, 2005 |access-date=2010-09-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025202305/http://home.comcast.net/~rpilaud/DADT%20Policy%20Analysis%20Alan%20Rogers.pdf |archive-date=October 25, 2012 }}</ref>

[[File:Major Alan G. Roger at Same-Sex Wedding Ceremony.jpg|thumb|right|Major Alan G. Rogers (top left) holding hands with his date during same-sex wedding ceremony on June 28, 2006]]
In June 2006, Rogers provided the opening prayer for a [[Same-sex marriage|same-sex wedding ceremony]]. Rogers reportedly expressed "an intensely deep loneliness that stemmed from his inability to have both a [same-sex] relationship ... and the military career he also loved so much."<ref name="cianciotto">{{citation|first=Jason |last=Cianciotto |url=http://www.pamshouseblend.com/viewRating.do?rateCommentId=53535 |title=My letter to the Post Ombudsman |periodical=Pam's House Blend: an Online Magazine in the Reality-Based Community |date=March 29, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}{{dead link|date=October 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

In July 2007, Rogers was deployed to Iraq. Friends organized a send-off party in his honor on July 14, 2007, held at the Fabulous Bed & Breakfast in Northwest Washington, D.C.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}

Rogers's commanding officer in Iraq was Col. Thomas Fernandez.<ref name="stgeorge"/> Rogers communicated via e-mail with many of his friends during his deployment, and two of his friends from AVER received e-mail from Rogers the day before he died.<ref name="cjohnson"/>

==Death and afterward==
According to an Army report, Rogers was killed by an [[improvised explosive device]] while on foot patrol in Baghdad, on January 27, 2008.<ref name="army">{{citation |url= http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=11649 |title=DoD Identifies Army Casualty |periodical=DefenseLink News Release |date=January 29, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref>  On January 30, 2008, friends of Rogers established the [https://web.archive.org/web/20080411060324/http://www.thealangrogersfund.org/ Alan G. Rogers Memorial Scholarship Fund]. <!--- Cleanup this --->

A funeral service was held for Rogers at Ebenezer Baptist Church on February 8, 2008.<ref name="brightcove">{{citation|first=Doug |last=Finger |url=http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1407924331&channel=294434710 |title=Video: The Funeral of Major Rev. Alan G. Rogers |periodical=[[Gainesville Sun]] |date=February 8, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411025648/http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1407924331&channel=294434710 |archive-date=2008-04-11 }}</ref> In honor of Rogers, Florida Gov. [[Charlie Crist]] ordered the Florida and U.S. flags be flown at [[half-staff]] at the [[Old Bradford County Courthouse|Bradford County Courthouse]], Hampton City Hall and the [[Florida State Capitol]].<ref name="gsun"/> Family members later expressed that "we really didn't know about [Rogers being gay] until after his death. "<ref name="howell">{{citation |first=Deborah |last=Howell |url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/28/AR2008032803062.html |title=Public Death, Private Life |periodical=[[The Washington Post]] |date=March 30, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref> Rogers' beneficiary from Florida later stated that he knew Rogers was gay, but felt it had "no more relevance than I'm straight."<ref name="howell"/>

Rogers was buried with [[full military honors]] at [[Arlington National Cemetery]] on March 14, 2008, in Section 60, at Gravesite 8558.<ref name="map">{{citation |url= http://wikimapia.org/#lat=38.875315&lon=-77.063674&z=17&l=0&m=a&v=2 |title=WikiMapia: USA / Virginia / Arlington, 3 km |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref> About 200 people attended the service, including Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England, Army Lt. Gen. John F. Kimmons, active duty military, both enlisted and officers, Rogers's friends and family from Florida, and Rogers's friends in northern Virginia, and Washington, D.C.<ref name="inskeep">{{citation |first=Steve |last=Inskeep |url= https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88939595 |title=Report: American Death Toll in Iraq War Hits 4,000 |periodical=[[National Public Radio]] |date=March 24, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref> Also in attendance were a dozen or more gay active duty military personnel.<ref name="smith">{{citation |first=Tony |last=Smith |url= http://www.thegaymilitarytimes.com/0804Rogers.html |title=Our Whole Self And Whole Story: Honoring My Friend and Hero, Major Alan G. Rogers |periodical=Gay Military Times |date=March 14, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref>

==National media coverage of Rogers's funeral==
Rogers's funeral gained [[Mass media|national media]] publicity, initially on [[MSNBC]], in ''[[The Washington Post]]'''' and on [[National Public Radio|National Public Radio's]] [[Morning Edition]].<ref name="stgeorge"/><ref name="inskeep"/><ref name="rutherford">{{citation|first=John |last=Rutherford |url=http://fieldnotes.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/03/14/770008.aspx?p=1 |title=Army Officer Was a Best Man in All Senses |periodical=[[NBC]] Field Notes |date=March 14, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080322082901/http://fieldnotes.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/03/14/770008.aspx?p=1 |archive-date=2008-03-22 }}</ref> However, initial reports omitted Rogers's [[sexual orientation]] or anything related to the subject.{{citation needed|date=November 2014}}

The Post and NPR reports coincided with the "grim milestone" that the U.S. Military death toll reached 4,000 dead.<ref name="inskeep"/> Rogers's death and funeral gained [[further]] media attention when it was revealed that he was gay and worked to end the military's DADT policy.<ref name="cjohnson"/>

Initially, members of the national media were well aware of Rogers's sexual orientation,<ref name="howell"/> yet it was widely reported that Rogers was not married and left no children.<ref name="stgeorge"/><ref name="inskeep"/><ref name="rutherford"/> While technically accurate, some members of the [[LGBT]] community viewed the statement as an intentional distortion and dodge of Rogers's sexual orientation.<ref name= "sldn"/><ref name="cianciotto"/><ref name= "smith"/><ref name="sullivan">{{citation |first=Andrew |last=Sullivan |url= http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/03/the-washington.html#more |title=The Washington Post's Well-Meant Homophobia |periodical=[[The Atlantic]] |date=March 28, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 }}</ref><ref name="spaulding">{{citation|first=Pam |last=Spaulding |url=http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4898 |title=Media and military closets gay soldier killed in Iraq |periodical=Pam's House Blend:  an Online Magazine in the Reality-Based Community |date=March 28, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412021209/http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4898 |archive-date=2008-04-12 }}</ref><ref name="spaulding2">{{citation|first=Pam |last=Spaulding |url=http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4928 |title=WaPo ombudsman: paper wrong to recloset deceased gay soldier |periodical=Pam's House Blend:  an Online Magazine in the Reality-Based Community |date=March 31, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412021215/http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=4928 |archive-date=2008-04-12 }}</ref>

Rogers's cousin, Cathy Long of Ocala, Fla., said, "The Post did a wonderful job. Personally, as far as the family is concerned, we really didn't know about this until after his death. It was in the back of our minds, but we didn't discuss it." Cathy Long accepted Rogers's flag at the major's funeral. "I really feel Alan was a lot more than that," said Cathy Long who called the ''Washington Blade'' story "self-serving whatever their cause is and that they're trying to use Alan to do that."<ref name= "howell"/>

''The Washington Post'' [[Ombudsman]], [[Deborah Howell]], stated that the editors of the Post deliberated the question of whether to disclose his sexual orientation and ultimately made a decision not to include such information.<ref name= "howell"/>

The Army asked that Rogers's sexual orientation not be disclosed, and the Army presented it as a concern of the family.<ref name="cjohnson"/>

The ''Washington Blade'' reported on the Post's decision to change the story and included more details about Rogers's activities and friends in the LGBT community.<ref name= "cjohnson"/> Subsequently, Howell of ''The Washington Post'', citing Rogers's apparent feelings on DADT, wrote a column admitting that the ''Post's'' article "would have been richer" had it disclosed his sexual orientation and activities in the GLBT community.<ref name= "howell"/>

On March 31, 2008, an [[Anonymity|anonymous]] attempt was made to remove information relating to Rogers's sexual orientation from the present [[Wikipedia]] article. The [[IP address]] associated with the attempt corresponds with the IP address for the office of the Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence (G-2) at the [[The Pentagon|Pentagon]], currently headed by Lt. Gen. John Kimmons.<ref name="cjohnson2">{{citation |first=Chris |last=Johnson |url= http://www.washblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17515 |title=Edits to gay soldier's Wikipedia entry traced to Pentagon |periodical=[[Washington Blade]] |date=April 3, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-03|quote=A Wikipedia article about Maj. Alan Rogers, a gay soldier who was killed in January in Iraq, was apparently edited by someone in the Pentagon, who removed any mention that Rogers was gay. The user on Monday redacted details about Rogers that appeared on the online encyclopedia site. Information that was deleted included Rogers’ sexual orientation; the soldier’s participation in American Veterans for Equal Rights, a group that works to change military policy toward gays; .... The IP address attached to the deletion of the details and the posted comments is 141.116.168.135.|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080412022845/http://www.washblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17515|archive-date=12 April 2008}}</ref> Kimmons attended Rogers's funeral and presented the U.S. flag from Rogers's coffin to a family member.<ref name= "inskeep"/> The Army subsequently denied that the IP address associated with the changes "necessarily belongs to any one specific office."<ref name="cjohnson3">{{citation|first=Chris |last=Johnson |url=http://www.washingtonblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17762 |title=Army: source of Wikipedia edit on gay soldier can't be traced |periodical=[[Washington Blade]] |date=April 17, 2008 |access-date=2008-04-23 |quote=The Army is stating that it cannot identify the source of Wikipedia article edits eliminating any mention that a soldier ... killed in Iraq was gay, even though the changes apparently came from an Army computer user at the Pentagon.  Army spokesman Maj. Nathan Banks said Army checks “do not necessarily indicate” that the IP address associated with the changes “necessarily belongs to any one specific office.” |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211120303/http://www.washingtonblade.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=17762 |archive-date=February 11, 2009 }}</ref>

The August 4, 2008, issue of ''[[The New Yorker]]'' magazine published a lengthy profile of Rogers, and the larger issues surrounding the DADT debate spurred on by his death. The story quotes Colonel Mike Hardy, who worked with Major Rogers at the Pentagon, as saying, "He did not make any moves to be remembered as a gay soldier. Nowhere in those phone calls home did he say, 'let everyone know that I died a proud gay officer.'" Ben McGrath, the author of the article, then comments, "Of course, being a proud gay officer is tantamount, under the current military policy, to being a retired gay officer with no pension."<ref name="mcgrath">{{citation |first=Ben |last=McGrath |url= http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/08/04/080804fa_fact_mcgrath |title=THE MILITARY LIFE:  A Soldier's Legacy:  Don't ask, don't tell, but Alan Rogers was a hero to everyone who knew him |periodical=[[The New Yorker]] |date=August 4, 2008 |access-date=2010-09-21 }}</ref>

In December 2010, the U.S. Congress passed a bill providing for the potential repeal of DADT pending certain conditions. Those were confirmed in July 2011 by  President [[Barack Obama]], the Secretary of Defense, and Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and repeal took effect on September 20, 2011.<ref name="bumiller">{{citation|first=Elisabeth |last=Bumiller|url= https://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/23/us/23military.html |title=Obama Ends 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell Policy' |periodical=[[The New York Times]] |date=July 22, 2011 |access-date=2012-10-30 }}</ref>

==Awards==
*[[File:Bronze Star ribbon.svg|60px]]&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Bronze Star Medal|Bronze Star]] (2)
*[[File:Purple Heart ribbon.svg|60px]]&nbsp;&nbsp;[[Purple Heart]]

{{Portal|Biography|LGBT}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/08/04/080804fa_fact_mcgrath?yrail A Soldier's Legacy] An article from ''The New Yorker'' about Rogers and the debate over press coverage
* [http://alanremembered.blogspot.com Alan Remembered (Personal dedication from a close friend)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20121025202305/http://home.comcast.net/~rpilaud/DADT%20Policy%20Analysis%20Alan%20Rogers.pdf In his own words: Maj. Alan Rogers on the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy] "Policy Management Project - Analysis of Department of Defense 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" Personnel Policy, Alan Rogers, Georgetown University, Master Policy Management (MPM) Capstone, PPOL 950-01, Dr. Mark Nadel, May 6, 2005.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Alan G.}}
[[index.php?title=Category:American LGBT military personnel]]
[[index.php?title=Category:American military personnel killed in the Iraq War]]
[[index.php?title=Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery]]
[[index.php?title=Category:Georgetown University alumni]]
[[index.php?title=Category:LGBT African Americans]]
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[[index.php?title=Category:LGBT rights activists from the United States]]
[[index.php?title=Category:United States Army officers]]
[[index.php?title=Category:University of Florida alumni]]
[[index.php?title=Category:University of Phoenix alumni]]
[[index.php?title=Category:1967 births]]
[[index.php?title=Category:2008 deaths]]
[[index.php?title=Category:United States Army personnel of the Iraq War]]