Tell Your Story

By sharing personal narratives, we can educate, inspire, and influence key decision-makers. Modern Military is committed to amplifying the voices of our community. We invite service members, veterans, and their families to contribute their stories on the various aspects of LGBTQ+ military life.

We are currently seeking videos and written stories focused on the following topics:

Opposing the NDAA rider

The House of Representatives filed a new version of the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with a provision banning medically necessary healthcare coverage for transgender adolescents of military service members and retirees. This rider was added at the last moment after lawmakers already negotiated a clean bill, negating months of discussions. If passed, TRICARE benefits would be below the standard of all major civilian plans by adding an exclusion not legally admissible under the Affordable Healthcare Act.

Your story will help us as we advocate to Senators to remove the amendment from the final bill. Tell lawmakers you don’t want them playing politics with the lives of thousands of military families.

What you should share:

  • How this provision harms your military family or your loved ones.
  • What impact this will have on financial security, medical readiness, and future retention of service members who have to choose between their service and their child’s health.
  • Why this care is ordinary medical care, supported by medical science, approved by all major medical associations, and should be managed by individuals and their health providers.
  • What positive impacts access to basic healthcare has had for trans youth in your life with real examples of improved self-esteem, healthy relationships, positive school performance, and reduced depression and anxiety.

Our government should be proficient, law-abiding, and accountable to its voters. Protecting our communities starts with rejecting leaders who hold principles that pose direct threats to our communities over safety. Every step of the nominee process should include proper vetting and every nomination that prioritizes politics over people should be blocked before it causes harm.

Our safety, freedom, and democracy are at risk. Tell lawmakers how specific nominees will directly or indirectly impact you, your career, your family, and your freedoms.

Remember: our democracy works best when we have leaders who prioritize accountability and fairness. Tell your senators that as a constituent you expect them to represent the voices of the voters and their choices will dictate how you vote in their next election.

What you should share:

  • Why values that unite us like safety, accountability, fairness, and trust are important in our appointed leaders.
  • How nominees with histories of discriminatory policies and harmful practices threaten the freedom and rights of marginalized communities.
  • Why political loyalty is dangerous to public safety and threatens national security.
  • What the real harm would be if these nominees led the institutions that shape policies that govern our lives.

While nothing is certain and we have no policy in hand, what we do know is that there are reports of an imminent transgender military ban that is stoking concern and creating a devastating uncertainty for transgender service members.

Banning thousands of qualified transgender service members — individuals who meet every qualification to serve and have been serving without incident and positively contributing to the nation’s defense for nearly a decade — would make our country less safe.

Trans service members, family members, allies, and military-connected people are encouraged to share their perspective on the negative impact that a ban of this magnitude would have on the armed forces, their friends and family, or themselves. This is an opportunity to share your personal journey and the visible and invisible impacts of the ban.

What you should share:

  • Positive personal stories of service, success, and achievements.
  • The day-to-day impact a ban would have on military readiness, recruitment, retention, and warfighting capability based on your personal experience, unit, or service area.
  • How systemic discrimination against the trans community chips away at civil rights for the greater community and makes our country less safe.

  • I Lived It: Will your story help others in some way? Are there things you wish you could go back and tell yourself before that story began for you? Let us help you amplify your voice in an I Lived It segment.
  • Testimonials: Are you or your family impacted by a military policy? Are there things you want others to know about how this policy has changed the course of your career, limited the way you can interact in certain settings, or limit the ability to bring your full self to military or veteran spaces? We can bring your story straight to policymakers and Congress to let them know about the real-life impact of policies.
  • Shining Star Recognition: Do you have a positive interaction to share as an LGBTQ+ or HIV-positive service member, military spouse/family member, or veteran? When we amplify positive recognition and examples of allyship, it allows others to identify safe spaces and supportive individuals at military installations, VA facilities, service organizations, and other groups.
  • Hometown Hero: Are you an LGBTQ+ service member or veteran making an impact in your job or volunteer time? Let us help you amplify your good works to a wider community through the Hometown Hero segment.
  • Deep Dive: Maybe you just wrote a book on an LGBTQ+ military or veteran adjacent topic. Or maybe you just need the world to know about a serious gap in veteran care that is harming our community. This is likely the segment for you.
  • Partner Spotlight: Does your work align with Modern Military’s vision, mission, and values? Let us know how we can collaborate and we can amplify the partnership through the Partner Spotlight segment.
  • Activist Central: Are you an LGBTQ+ and/or social justice activist with wisdom to share? We’d love to feature you, what you’ve learned, and activism tips so the next generation of service members, veterans, and their families have the tools, tips, and training they need right at their fingertips.
Our Editing Process

Modern Military’s editing process is culturally-sensitive, trauma-informed, and storyteller led. You can tell your story anonymously if you wish. If you wish to use your real name, you will receive full credit for your work. We edit for clarity, concision, length, and framing. We will never change your intent or make edits to your lived experience without your permission. We will use images to accompany your story that you approve or provide. You will see and approve the final version of your story before it is published. If your story is published digitally, you can request changes or deletion at any time.

Please note plagiarized or AI-generated submissions are not accepted.

Next Steps: Submit Your Story

1. If you want to submit a video, click the button below:

2. If you prefer to share your story or thoughts in writing instead (or in addition to a video), use the form below. Select “Testimonial” for the piece type and write NDAA, Nominees, or Trans Ban for your subject matter/topic area.

Demographic Information

MMAA collects demographic information for grant purposes and organizational assessment.

Your Gender Identity
Your Racial Identity
Are you of Hispanic, Latine, or of Spanish origin?
Your Age Range
Tell Your Story
Please share the piece type *

Modern Military collects first-person stories as part of our advocacy agenda. Your story may be shared with the media, Congressional representatives, DoD officials, or on Modern Military's social media platforms and publications to amplify the issue. You may choose to share your story anonymously.