Transgender Services members will be separated from the US military unless they receive the exemption, according to a Pentagon memo filed in court Wednesday. Essentially, it prohibits participation or serving in the military.
Donald Trump signed an executive order in January, which targeted transgender forces in a personal way – at one point, saying that the man who identified as a woman “is not consistent with the humility and selflessness needed by a service member.”
This month, the Pentagon said the US military would no longer allow transgender individuals to join and would cease to implement or promote procedures related to the gender transition of service members.
Wednesday's late memo went further. The Pentagon said it must create a procedure that will identify transgender troops within 30 days and then begin separating them from the troops within 30 days.
“Establishing high standards of service member preparation, lethality, cohesion, integrity, humility, uniformity and integrity is a policy of the US government,” the memo dated February 26th.
“This policy contradicts medical, surgical, and mental health constraints that show individuals suffering from gender discomfort, or those with a current diagnosis or history, or symptoms of having gender discomfort.”
There is no requirement for transgender forces to self-identify, and there is no exact number of pentagons.
The Pentagon said the exemption would be recognized as “as long as there is an attractive government interest in maintaining service members that directly support combat capabilities.”
For the exemption, the military must be able to meet many criteria, such as “showing 36th consecutive month of stability in the gender of its service members without clinically significant distress.”
The military has around 1.3 million active duty personnel, according to data from the Department of Defense. Transgender rights advocates say they have as many as 15,000 transgender service members. Officials say the number is thousands.
The move that went further than the restrictions Trump imposed on members of transgender services during his initial administration was said to be unprecedented by his supporters. “The scope and severity of this ban are unprecedented. “Shanon Minter of the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) said:
The memo was filed in court as part of a lawsuit filed by the NCLR and the pleasant law. The lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of the January executive order and alleges it violates the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment.
This month, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses said that people with gender dysphoria already in the military will be “treated with dignity and respect.”
