Trump’s Ban On Trans People In The Military Is Going Ahead, And People Are Furious
This is about more than just the US military.
Back in 2017 Donald Trump announced, as if on a whim, that he would no longer allow trans people to serve in the military. Since then, the proposed ban has been subject to delays and legal challenges, but today the Supreme Court of the United States made a decision that will allow the ban to go ahead. It goes without saying that people are furious.
The Supreme Court didn’t so much support the ban as do absolutely nothing to stand in its way. In a 5-4 decision, the justices essentially voted to stop blocking the ban while other courts are hearing challenges to it, which means that the military is free to go ahead and start blocking transgender people for the time being. That will reverse the step forward taken under Obama, whose administration made a historic announcement that it would allow transgender people to serve openly in the military.
In practice, the ban means that most trans people will shortly be unable to join the US military. The Department of Defense argues that the new policy is “not a ban on service by transgender persons” altogether, and it’s true that there are some loopholes. Trans people already in the military will be allowed to continue to serve and access medical treatment, and trans people who completed surgical transition three or more years ago will be allowed to join up. So will trans people who have never been diagnosed with gender dysphoria, so long as they’re willing to serve in the military as their birth sex.
Let's be clear: the attempted ban on transgender service members is based on reasoning that has been thoroughly dismissed by medical organizations, military leadership, and budget analysts. Its sole purpose is to erase trans people from the public square. That's all this is.
— Charlotte Clymer?️? (@cmclymer) January 22, 2019
I’m a nonbinary NASA intern. Nothing about my identity makes me any less capable of working in the government.
This administration is manufacturing oppression as a distraction from real issues. #TransMilitaryBan
PS my coworkers and I are getting pretty desperate #shutdown pic.twitter.com/VEBUiUrpI0— v cold (@vwegs) January 22, 2019
At the end of the day, who the ban will affect seems to come down to Trump’s original tweets on the issue, where he stressed that the military “cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail”. Understandably, people are furious about that, because it makes it sound like trans people are necessarily a burden on an organisation, which — and I can’t believe this has to be said — is not true.
The #TransMilitaryBan is unfathomable discrimination that materially degrades our armed forces.
We have a large number of trans & nonbinary folk in #CyberSecurity . Banning them from US Cyber Command & other military cyber units weakens our Internet defense & offense capabilities— Katie Moussouris (@k8em0) January 22, 2019
I'm so sorry this is happening to our community. Reach out to our most vulnerable today, tell them you love them, that you know who they are and believe who they are, that you know this is bullshit #transmilitaryban
— Garrard Conley (@gayrodcon) January 22, 2019
As Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, put it, the real purpose of the ban is pretty transparent: it was “purpose-built to humiliate”.
.@realDonaldTrump’s ban on trans Americans serving in our nation’s military was purpose-built to humiliate brave men & women seeking to serve their country. Deeply concerning that #SCOTUS is allowing his ban to proceed for now. #ProtectTransTroops https://t.co/PgtEJJVHvX
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 22, 2019
And that humiliation carries. Even people who are opposed to the military, or people who live in countries other than the US, are affected by this ban, because it sends a message that says discriminating against trans people is okay, that it can be justified. It can’t be, and it shouldn’t be.
I have major critiques of the military industrial complex, but no one can deny how this — once again — signals to others that it’s OK to discriminate against trans folks. Trump’s attacks on marginalized communities continue. https://t.co/aQJMTzmb5D
— Raquel Willis (@RaquelWillis_) January 22, 2019
Feature image via Gage Skidmore on Flickr, used under CC BY-SA 2.0.