Defense Department Announces Plan on Lifting Transgender Military Ban

WASHINGTON, DC, July 14, 2015—The Department of Defense has announced a six-month plan to explore a possible lifting of the ban on openly transgender people serving in the military. In response, National LGBTQ Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey released the following statement:

“Transgender people have been denied the opportunity to serve openly in the nation’s military for too long. Twenty percent of transgender people serve in the military at some point in their lives, which includes 15,000 current transgender service members, and they know all to well the constant struggle of hiding who they are because of the discriminatory military policy.

“The Defense Department’s announcement follows a commitment to eliminating discrimination—from ending racial segregation in 1948, to lifting of the ban on openly lesbian, gay, and bisexual service members in 2011, to deciding to allow women to serve in front line combat units in 2013. We look forward to the full implementation of a policy that allows all LGBTQ people to serve openly.”

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CONTACT:
Jorge Amaro
Media and
Public Relations Director
213-842-7564
jamaro@thetaskforce.org