Blue discharge

A blue discharge, also called blue ticket, was a form of administrative military discharge formerly issued by the United States from 1916 to 1947. It was intended as a discharge without honor, neither honorable nor dishonorable. The blue ticket became the discharge of choice for commanders seeking to remove homosexual service members from the ranks. They were also issued disproportionately to African Americans and Lebanese Americans. Service members holding a blue discharge were subjected to discrimination in civilian life. They were denied the benefits of the G.I. Bill by the Veterans Administration and had difficulty finding work because employers were aware of the negative connotations of a blue discharge. Following intense criticism in the press – especially the black press, because of the high percentage of African Americans who received blue discharges – and in Congress, the blue discharge was discontinued in 1947, replaced by two new classifications: general and undesirable.