As Trump's ban looms, transgender service members defend their fitness to serve [View all]
Source: Axios
11 hours ago
The Pentagon's forced ouster of transgender service members could impact thousands of people and devastate careers, military members and veterans say.
The big picture: While the Trump administration claims its restrictive policies will promote military "readiness," trans soldiers and veterans say the administration's ban is driven by animus rather than evidence — and will mark a substantial loss to the armed services.
Catch up quick: The Pentagon announced earlier this month it would begin removing some 1,000 openly transgender service members and give other active-duty service members 30 days and reservists 60 days to leave or be forced out.
While there is no exact count of the number of transgender people serving, officials have said 4,240 service members have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria.
The policy comes amid years of whiplash. But for nearly two decades, "don't ask, don't tell," which banned gay, lesbian and bisexual people from serving openly, was the military's policy.
What they're saying: Alaina Kupec, a former Naval intelligence officer, told Axios she thinks "this is a path toward don't ask, don't tell again — and it starts with the transgender community."
"If we use the logic of the president and the secretary of defense, they can make a decision on who is best to serve based on what they think, not what's based on fact," she said.
Read more:
https://www.axios.com/2025/05/17/trump-transgender-service-members-veterans-ban