Modern Military Association of America Opposes Executive Order on Homelessness and Civil Commitment

LGBTQ+ veterans deserve housing, healthcare, and dignity — not incarceration

July 25, 2025 – Washington, D.C.

Modern Military Association of America (MMAA) strongly opposes the recent Executive Order that expands the use of civil commitment and involuntary treatment for individuals experiencing serious mental illness, substance use disorders, or homelessness. The EO promotes measures such as assisted outpatient treatment and relocation to treatment centers or other facilities, which could disproportionately impact vulnerable communities, including LGBTQ+ veterans.

Modern Military affirms that all veterans deserve comprehensive housing, healthcare, and support services rooted in dignity and compassion—not criminalization or coercive intervention.

This order is a dangerous step backward that threatens the dignity, safety, and civil liberties of millions of Americans — particularly LGBTQ+ veterans, who experience increased risks of homelessness and mental health challenges. 

While LGBTQ+ people are proudly and visibly represented within military and veteran spaces, they continue to navigate significant barriers in accessing healthcare, housing, employment, and family support. These challenges are further amplified when intersecting with the long-term impacts of military service, discrimination, trauma, and systemic inequities.

This Executive Order equates homelessness and mental illness with criminality, encourages forced institutionalization through civil commitment, and threatens to defund programs proven to reduce homelessness — many of which have been vital lifelines for LGBTQ+ veterans. Instead of addressing systemic causes of poverty, trauma, and inequality, this policy prioritizes policing and punishment over compassion and care.

We are especially alarmed by the implications for transgender veterans, who are already at a higher risk of housing instability. Housing discrimination, stigma, and racism compound these risks — particularly for Black transgender veterans, who experience disproportionate rates of housing instability.

U.S. military personnel are already at elevated risk for major depression (23%) compared to the general population (15–20%). LGBTQ+ service members face even higher risks for chronic psychological distress and suicidal ideation due to stigma and minority stress—both during and after service. The Center for American Progress found that LGB veterans are five times more likely than their non-LGB peers to be diagnosed with PTSD.

At Modern Military, we cannot support policies that punish people for surviving trauma — especially those who served our country. Rather than investing in criminalization and surveillance, we must expand access to trauma-informed, affirming, and community-based care that honors the humanity of LGBTQ+ veterans and all unhoused individuals.

We call on those in power to reject this harmful order and uphold policies grounded in evidence, equity, and compassion. Our LGBTQ+ veterans deserve better—and we will not stop fighting for them.