The Servicemembers Legal Defense Members announced a lawsuit that says the Defense of Marriage Act violates their constitutional rights and asks for the government to provide the same benefits as straight couples.
""It's about justice for gay and lesbian service members and their families in our armed forces rendering the same military service, making the same sacrifices, and taking the same risks to keep our nation secure at home and abroad," Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the SLDN, said in a press release reported by the Associated Press.
The lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Courts in Boston Thursday represents eight active and retired service members and their family members, according to The Huffington Post.
Under the federal Defense of Marriage Act, the government is required to ignore the marriage of same-sex couples, which are legal in six states and Washington D.C.
Pentagon spokesperson Capt. John Kirby told the Associated Press in a statement, ""In connection with 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' repeal, the Defense Department is engaged in a careful and deliberate review of the possibility of extending eligibility for benefits, when legally permitted, to other individuals including same-sex partners."
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