Transgenders, people with 'history of gender dysphoria' can no longer join US military: Hegseth memo
Explore how a memo by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth enforces Trump's order, preventing transgender enlistment and halting gender transition procedures in the US military.
Transgender people can no longer join the US army. United States Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth last week issued a memo preventing transgender from joining the US military and halting gender transition for those already enrolled.
The memo was issued on February 7 but became public on Monday (Feb 10) as part of a court case challenging US President Donald Trump's order barring military service for transgender personnel.
Anti-trans memo
In the February 7 memo, Hegseth ordered: "Effective immediately, all new accessions for individuals with a history of gender dysphoria are paused".
Additionally, it instructs that "all unscheduled, scheduled or planned medical procedures associated with affirming or facilitating a gender transition for service members are paused".
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While the memo did not specify if any action will be taken against transgender personnel already in the military, it cited Trump's executive order, which said: "Expressing a false 'gender identity' divergent from an individual's sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service."
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US and transgender military personnel
As per AFP, transgender individuals in the US military have faced a roller coaster of changing policies over the years.
During Barack Obama's second term in office, the US military lifted a ban ontransgendertroops in 2016. It allowed trans troops already serving to continue to do so. It further stated that transgender recruits will be accepted by July 1, 2017.
After Trump came to power, he postponed that date to 2018.
Despite a lengthy legal battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court, in April 2019, transgender personnel were once again banned.
In 2021, Trump's successor, the 46th President of the United States Joe Biden, lifted the restrictions, saying all Americans qualified to serve should be able to do so.
Now, back in power, Trump has once again banned trans individuals from the US military. This is in line with his anti-DEI stance that in less than one month of Trump 2.0 has led to a blitz of orders against 'racist/sexist DEI nonsense'.
(With inputs from agencies)
