The American Military Partner Association was a non-profit organization for the partners, spouses, and families of America's LGBT service members and veterans. AMPA traced its roots to the "Campaign for Military Partners," an organization founded by the same-sex partners of service members and sponsored by Servicemembers United. With the close of SU following the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", in 2012, Stephen Peters organized AMPA into an independent non-profit, non-partisan 5013 organization in Washington, DC. Ashley Broadway, the spouse of an active duty soldier, and Jim Cassidy, the spouse of an active duty sailor, joined Stephen as founding board members. In May 2019, AMPA merged with OutServe-SLDN to form the — a united voice for the LGBTQ military and veteran community. MMAA carries on the missions of both AMPA and OutServe-SLDN through education, advocacy, and support for LGBTQ service members, veterans, military spouses, family members and allies.
About
AMPA was committed to connecting LGBT military families, supporting them through the challenges of military service, honoring them for their commitment to our country, and serving them by advocating on their behalf.
Connecting:
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Serving:
Activities
Since its founding, the non-profit organization managed to:
Highlight the discrimination LGBT military partners and families face by successfully pitching dozens of stories to national, regional, and local media.
Create a home on the web for the LGBT military family community that provides a list of available resources, a military partner blog, and a guide to media coverage of issues related to LGBT military families.
Facilitate the first meeting between Pentagon officials and the partners of active duty gay and lesbian service members.
Hold the first Military Partners Forum in Washington, D.C.
Initiate a Military Partner Brunch series in Washington, D.C., and San Diego, California, with plans to expand the series into other cities across the country.
Create a private social network exclusively for the partners and spouses of LGBT service members.
In December 2012, when the same-sex spouse of a U.S. Army officer was denied membership in the Association of Bragg Officers' Spouses at Fort Bragg, she reported her experience on the AMPA website. In June 2014, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it would only provide benefits to the same-sex spouses of veterans who either married in the state in which they resided or live in a state that recognizes their marriage when they apply for benefits. On August 18, the AMPA filed an appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit challenging the VA's interpretation of federal law. Their brief cited Windsor and many federal court decisions since Windsor that have held denial of marriage rights to same-sex couples unconstitutional. It said the VA's policy ruling "imports into federal law unconstitutional state definitions of marital status."
Events
In its effort to connect LGBT military partners and spouses around the country, the American Military Partner Association holds local social events to bring military partners face-to-face with others in the same situation for mutual support and encouragement. For LGBT military partners and spouses who are not near major military bases where these events usually occur, a private online social network was established to help connect partners/spouses in remote locations to build camaraderie and mutual support.
