Dan Spitzer, a mild-mannered second-year Law student, takes time to contemplate every word before he speaks. He is soft-spoken and polite.
And that's exactly how he plans on leading his activist organization into a new phase of protest.
Spitzer has just taken over as the head of Lambda Law, the Penn Law School's support network for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.
Lambda Law gained notoriety last year when it protested the Solomon Amendment, a federal law that requires schools to allow military recruiters on campus or risk the loss of federal funding.
But this year, Spitzer has different plans for dealing with the military, the policies of which rule out hiring openly gay personnel - lawyers included.
"We're not bashing the military in any way," Spitzer said. "We want to work for them, that's all."
The military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy prevents gay servicemen from disclosing their sexual orientation.
Recoiling from the Supreme Court ruling that upheld the Solomon Amendment last March, Lambda Law has decided to change tactics under the auspices of its new leadership.
Instead of organizing massive protests against the military, Spitzer has embarked upon a quieter campaign that may include tabling and flyering in the spring, when the Judge Advocate General-'s Office - the sector of the military that hires lawyers - recruits on campus.
Previous Lambda Law activities included marches and protest interviews, which entail signing up for an interview with a military recruiter and not showing up.
"We're not bitter or angry, we just think the military is missing out on good lawyers," Spitzer said. "We don't want to cause a stir, we just want jobs."
A major reason for discontinuing previous methods is consideration for fellow law students who might be interested in careers in the military, Spitzer added.
"We don't want to adversely affect law students who might want to go into the military at some point," Lambda Law member Louis Kieran said.
Meanwhile, ongoing legal fights against the Solomon Amendment are losing steam.
A Penn Law professor has a suit pending in court that argues against the Solomon Amendment on different grounds than the one that reached the Supreme Court last spring.
Professor Stephen Burbank filed Burbank v. Rumsfeld in 2003 after Penn was threatened with fines for noncompliance with the Solomon Amendment.
Now, however, Burbank thinks the lawsuit will be withdrawn because he has little faith that it will succeed.
"Many involved felt that their efforts might more productively be devoted to other means of manifesting disagreement with the Solomon Amendment," Burbank said.
Even though the lawsuit may be withdrawn, University President Amy Gutmann, in several speeches, has proclaimed her support for gay law students fighting the Solomon Amendment.
Still, military recruiters keep flocking to Penn's campus, looking for interested students.
"We haven't noticed any lack of interest in the military, even though the administration is against us," West Philadelphia military recruiter Richard Barreto said. "Someone doesn't like us, we talk to someone else."
And Lambda Law is sticking to its policy of trying to work with - instead of against - the military recruiters.
"I think it's necessary to be outspoken and take a stance, but there's only so much we can do," Kieran said. "Whatever measures that are taken have to be carefully thought out."
