A federal appeals court has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to prohibit around 30 individuals who identify as transgender from serving in the U.S. military.
In a 2-1 ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decided that 28 transgender individuals involved in a lawsuit against the ban will be allowed to “continue to serve in the military while their litigation is ongoing.” reported.
The ruling is said to “apply only to the 28 plaintiffs,” though they are seeking to have the court extend protections to all transgender service members.
Judge Robert L. Wilkins noted, “Early in his second term, President Trump issued an executive order stating that individuals who express a different ‘gender identity’ than their assigned sex do not meet the military’s stringent standards.” In the majority opinion, he referenced Executive Order No. 14183. He also mentioned that the President and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth categorized those with gender dysphoria as ineligible for service, arguing that their identities were at odds with the military’s expectations of “honesty, humility, and sincerity.”
“In this matter, the government has not provided any actual justification for its disparaging views of these individuals,” Wilkins stated. He pointed out that the government acknowledges that the plaintiffs currently serving in prison, along with over 80 nominations, have done so honorably and don’t present a security risk, even if they identify as transgender and experience gender dysphoria.
This court ruling follows a January 2025 executive order from President Trump which claimed that “expressing a different ‘gender identity’ from one’s assigned gender fails to meet the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
“Aside from the hormonal and surgical interventions involved, adopting a gender identity that doesn’t align with one’s assigned gender undermines a soldier’s dedication to an honorable, honest, and disciplined way of life, even in private,” the order continued. It further argued that a man’s assertion of being a woman is at odds with the humility and selflessness expected of military personnel.
In February 2025, the U.S. Army announced it would cease allowing individuals who identify as transgender to serve and would stop performing medical procedures related to gender transition.
