a new york-based documentary photographer spent three years traveling the u.s. photographing and interviewing gay veterans and servicemen to share their stories of suppression , sadness and silence in a moving photo essay .
vincent cianni , 63 , said he embarked on the project , gays in the military , to better understand why homosexuals would enlist in the military to begin with ; voluntarily signing up for a system that did .
` it seems i spent most of my life uninterested in knowing about the military because i supported peace , the fight to end violence and injustice , and the sanctity of life , ' the photographer told vice .