Newly appointed Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, while visiting with troops on duty in Kandahar, Afghanistan, indicated that he supports ?lifting the military ban on transgender individuals serving in the U.S. armed forces.?Even though the transgendered are specifically prohibited from serving under current policy, it is estimated some 15,000 are doing so in secret.
But Carter said it may be time to change that stance:
“I’m very open-minded about … what their personal lives and proclivities are, provided they can do what we need them to do for us. That’s the important criteria. Are they going to be excellent service members? And I don’t think anything but their suitability for service should preclude them.”
The White House is in agreement with Carter’s views on the issue, according to Press Secretary Josh Earnest:
“The president agrees with the sentiment that all Americans who are qualified to serve should be able to serve, and for that reason, we here at the White House welcome the comments of the secretary of defense.”
The Defense Department, however, was quick to say there is no review of the policy underway on transgender troops in the military.
Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, a Navy lieutenant commander and physician based in Kandahar, recently sent an e-mail to the Defense Department in which he said he thought the policy should be rescinded:
?I am continually struck by how these individuals, who risk their lives every day to support our mission, live not in fear of the enemy, but rather in fear of being discovered for who they are.”
Gay Rights groups called the Defense Secretary’s comments encouraging, but urged action to back the words.?David Stacy, government affairs director at the Human Rights Campaign remarked:
?We urge Secretary Carter to put action to his comments by ordering an immediate review of the outdated regulations that prevent transgender service members from serving our nation openly and honestly. Our nation’s transgender service members bravely and heroically serve our nation, and they certainly deserve to be able to be honest about who they are.?
It is unclear just how soon such a policy change could be implemented across all the branches of the U.S. armed forces.
