Sailor victimized for refusing AIDS test
1986Adam Wood 1986-08Read it in the scan (PDF at ETOL), page 15 →
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On June 23, Naval Petty Officer 2nd Class Philip Nolan was found guilty of refusing to take a blood test for AIDS required of all naval personnel. On May 6, Nolan also refused to leave with his ship, the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy.
Nolan's sentence was 45 days in confinement, reduction to the lowest enlisted rank, and a bad-conduct discharge.
Nolan is the first person to defy a new military regulation, which requires all members of the Armed Forces to undergo a blood test for AIDS. The test is supposed to "ensure the health of military personnel." This claim sounds a bit hollow, however, considering that there is no conclusive evidence showing that AIDS can be transmitted by casual contact.
Nolan's defense stated, "What is being challenged is Petty Officer Nolan's and every other citizen's right to privacy." As for refusing to deploy with his ship, Nolan testified that he had been threatened by his commanding officer, Cmdr. Gemmil.
Gemmil had told Nolan, "We'll take care of you as soon as you get on that boat." Gemmil's threat shines a little light on the real reason for the new military regulation.
The mandatory blood tests enforced by the Armed Forces serve to intimidate and silence all homosexual personnel. In this respect, it resembles the LaRouche AIDS initiative on the ballot in California, which requires testing, registration, and quarantine of all those exposed to the AIDS virus in the civilian population.
Both measures put the blame for AIDS on the victims of the disease rather than demanding that the government allocate sufficient funds to find a cure.
Entering the military does not remove a person's citizenship or constitutional rights to privacy and protection from unreasonable search and seizure. Philip Nolan was the first to stand up against this uncon -stitutional military regulation. Assuredly, there will be more protests in the future.
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Over 1 million signatures have recently been gathered in California to support an initiative on the November ballot (Proposition 63) declaring English the official language of the state. If passed by simple majority, this initiative would