President Donald Trump administration has wielded another big stick as transgender service members are set to be discharged from the U.S. military, according to a Pentagon memo filed in court on Wednesday.
The move, which goes further than restrictions President Trump placed on transgender service members during his first tenure, was described as holistic by advocates.
Though, the change comes after an executive order signed by Mr. Trump in late January, designed to bar transgender individuals from military service.
“Service members who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria will be processed for separation from military service,” the memo stated.
Also, the memo noted that troops could seek a waiver on an individual basis. They may be “considered for a waiver on a case-by-case basis, provided there is a compelling government interest in retaining the service member that directly supports warfighting capabilities,” it said.
To qualify for a waiver, service members must demonstrate they have never pursued gender transition and show “36 consecutive months of stability in the service member’s sex without clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.”
Moreover, the policy shift marks the latest development in a years-long political tug-of-war over transgender military service.
Under President Barack Obama’s administration, a 2016 policy allowed transgender troops to serve openly, with plans to start accepting transgender recruits by mid-2017.
However, the Trump administration first delayed that timeline and later sought to reverse the policy entirely. After a series of legal battles, the restrictions officially took effect in April 2019.
President Joe Biden abruptly rescinded the ban early in his term, stressing that all qualified Americans should be able to serve. But upon returning to office in January, Trump reinstated restrictions through an executive order, stating: “Expressing a false ‘gender identity’ divergent from an individual’s sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
Transgender rights have remained a flashpoint in American politics, with states enacting sharply divergent policies on issues like access to gender-affirming healthcare and restrictions on books discussing gender identity in schools and libraries.
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