President Barack Obama signs the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 during a ceremony at the Interior Department in Washington, D.C., Dec. 22, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)  For we are not a nation that says, “don’t ask, don’t tell.” We are a nation that says, “Out of many, we are one.”  We are a nation that welcomes the service of every patriot.  We are a nation that believes that all men and women are created equal. Those are the ideals that generations have fought for.  Those are the ideals that we uphold today.  And now, it is my honor to sign this bill into law.  -- President Barack Obama, December 22, 2010. One year ago , President Obama signed into law the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal Act, bringing to an end a discriminatory policy that forced patriotic Americans to serve under a cloud of anxiety and isolation and stood in stark contrast to our shared values of unity and equality. One year later, gay and lesbian service members can serve the country they love without hiding who they love – and both our military and country are stronger for it.  To commemorate the one year anniversary of President Obama signing the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repeal Act, we asked a few former service members to reflect on the long journey toward repeal and what it was like to watch President Obama sign the Repeal Act into law: Zoe Dunning Until her retirement in 2007, Retired Navy Commander Zoe Dunning was one of the only openly gay service members in the country, having successfully fought an attempted discharge in 1993.  For many of those years, she served on the board of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network as an advocate for the repeal of DADT.  read more