FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Modern Military Association of America
Email: [email protected]

Washington, D.C. – On January 27, as part of a series of targeted attacks on gender-expansive people, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order that effectively bans transgender people from serving in the U.S. military.

Modern Military’s Position

Modern Military condemns this Executive Order, which is a significant step backward for military readiness and equality.

Rachel Branaman, the Executive Director of Modern Military, stated: “Trans people have served in every conflict since the Revolutionary war, and have been serving openly for almost a decade with honor and integrity in every theater across the globe. The trans ban was wrong in 2019, it’s wrong now, and so has every other attempt to discriminate against minority populations who serve and protect our country. Modern Military will work tirelessly to mitigate the devastating impact this will have on thousands of servicemembers and their families.”

Summary of the Executive Order Entitled “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness”

This order:

– Directs the Secretary of Defense to update medical standards, likely resulting in the disqualification of transgender individuals from military service.
– Prohibits the use of pronouns that do not match an individual’s sex assigned at birth.
– Bans individuals from using facilities (sleeping, changing, bathing) that do not correspond to their sex assigned at birth.
– Rescinds previous policies that allowed transgender individuals to serve openly and access transition-related medical care.
– Does not immediately discharge currently serving transgender troops, but sets the stage for potential future removals.

The order questions the honor, humility, and selflessness of transgender troops. It inaccurately justifies new restrictions as essential for military readiness, unit cohesion, and maintaining high mental and physical health standards. It lacks a specific time frame for discharges, instead directing the Secretary of Defense to implement new policies within 60 days.

Why Discriminating Against Transgender Troops is Bad Policy

– Transgender service members are fully deployable. The military’s rigorous medical and fitness standards already ensure that only individuals fully capable of meeting readiness and deployment requirements are allowed to serve, regardless of gender identity. Transgender personnel must pass the same medical exams as their peers to deploy and serve in demanding roles. Not all transgender troops elect to have gender affirming surgery, and for those who do get surgery, necessary medications, accommodations, and recovery time is similar to other surgeries commonly undergone by service members during downtime.

– Discrimination is more costly than equality. The annual cost to the military is less than $1,000 per transgender service member (Source: RAND) – comparable to any other service member. Conversely, banning transgender service members will cost the Department of Defense billions over the next two decades. 73% of transgender service members are Senior Enlisted with 12–21 years of experience. Removing this skilled workforce creates an operational gap that will take at least 20 years to rebuild. The financial and operational costs of exclusion far outweigh any perceived benefits.

– The ban will harm unit cohesion. Trust and unit cohesion are paramount in military settings. Forcing service members to hide their identity negatively impacts readiness and expertise.

– Every previous attempt to discriminate against minority populations in the military has been harmful – and will have far-reaching consequences beyond the target population. For instance, we know that Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was weaponized against minority populations. From racial integration to the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the inclusion of diverse service members has consistently strengthened our armed forces.

Our Message to Transgender Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families

– This is not an immediate ban. Lambda Legal and HRC have pledged to challenge the ban in court, and enforceable policy must still be written to operationalize it. Effected service members are still entitled to all due process afforded to anyone being discharged from the military.

– Support is available. Visit Modern Military’s website and https://militarytransrights.org/ for resources and assistance.

Modern Military will continue to fight for everyone’s right to serve openly and authentically, recognizing that our military is strongest when it reflects the diversity of our nation.

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Modern Military is the nation’s largest organization of LGBTQ+ service members, military spouses, veterans, their families, and allies. We educate, advocate, and champion for the rights and well-being of LGBTQ+ service members, veterans, and their families as well as people living with HIV. We envision an inclusive and equitable military environment where every member of the LGBTQ+ and HIV-positive community is respected, valued, and empowered to thrive.

 

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