Margarethe "Grethe" Cammermeyer (born March 24, 1942) is a former Norwegian-American military officer. She served as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

in the

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

National Guard National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. Nat ...

and became a

gay rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , ...

activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

Early life and education

Born in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, Norway, she became a United States citizen in 1960. In 1961 she joined the Army Nurse Corps as a student. She received a B.S. in nursing in 1963 from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of ...

. At the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seatt ...

School of Nursing, she earned a master's degree in 1976 and a Ph.D. in 1991.

Career and activism

She had a 15-year marriage to Harvey Hawken and they had four sons. She divorced in 1980. In 1988, when she was 46, she met the woman who later became her wife, Diane Divelbess. In 1989, responding to a question during a routine security clearance interview, she disclosed that she is a

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

. The National Guard began

military discharge A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and the ...

proceedings against her. On June 11, 1992, she was honorably discharged. Cammermeyer filed a lawsuit against the decision in

civil court Civil law may refer to: * Civil law (common law), the part of law that concerns private citizens and legal persons * Civil law (legal system), or continental law, a legal system originating in continental Europe and based on Roman law ** Private la ...

. In June 1994, Judge Thomas Zilly of the

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ruled that her discharge and the ban on gays and lesbians serving in the military were unconstitutional. She returned to the National Guard and served as one of the few openly gay or lesbian people in the U.S. military while the " don't ask don't tell" policy was in effect, until her retirement in 1997. A television movie about Cammermeyer's story, '' Serving in Silence'', was made in 1995, with Glenn Close starring as Cammermeyer. Its content was largely taken from Cammermeyer's autobiography of the same name. After retirement, Cammermeyer ran for the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...

in Washington's 2nd congressional district in 1998. She won the Democratic

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, but lost in the general election to

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incumbent Jack Metcalf. In June 2010, she was appointed to the

Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS) is one of the oldest Department of Defense (DoD) federal advisory committees and was established in 1951 by then- Secretary of Defense (SecDef) George C. Marshall. The committee is ...

, a committee which is appointed by the

United States Secretary of Defense The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces, and is a high ranking member of the federal cabinet. DoDD 5100.1: Enclosure 2: a The se ...

and which reports to the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national sec ...

. The Point Foundation announced plans to honor Cammermeyer with its Point Legend Award in April 2011. In 2012, after same-sex marriage was legalized in Washington state, Cammermeyer and her wife Diane Divelbess became the first same-sex couple to get a license in

Island County Island County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 86,857. Its county seat is Coupeville, while its largest city is Oak Harbor. The county's name reflects the fact that it is compo ...

References

External links

Official site

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o
glbtq encyclopedia

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cammermeyer, Margarethe Bisexual military personnel Bisexual politicians University of Maryland, Baltimore alumni University of Washington School of Nursing alumni 1942 births Living people American LGBT rights activists American LGBT politicians Norwegian LGBT people Cammermeyer, Margarethe Norwegian emigrants to the United States American military personnel discharged for homosexuality Women in Washington (state) politics Washington (state) Democrats Women in the United States Army United States Army Nurse Corps officers People with acquired American citizenship 21st-century American women

Early life and education

Career and activism

See also

References

External links