WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Army announced today it is elevating authority to discharge transgender service members to the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Manpower and Reserve Affairs), the highest level at which that authority has ever been reserved. Prior to today’s announcement, local unit commanders were authorized to approve transgender soldiers’ separation orders. This step mirrors similar measures taken by the Department of Defense in the final months of the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy that once barred gays and lesbians from serving in the military.
“Today’s action by the Army helps over 6,000 transgender soldiers serving in silence. It also helps their commanders, who are increasingly stymied trying to apply 1970’s medical policy to today’s Army,” said Allyson Robinson, former Army captain and SPARTA Director of Policy. “While transgender service members welcome this step, they recognize it is only a stopgap measure aimed at making a failing policy fail less. What they and their commanders need is a comprehensive, Department-level policy review.”
Today’s action comes as the Pentagon faces mounting pressure from within and without to address its outdated policies on transgender military service, and less than two weeks after Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter made supportive remarks on the topic at a meeting with troops in Kandahar, Afghanistan. “With this step, Army Secretary McHugh adds his voice to that of Air Force Secretary James and other current and former military leaders signaling that the policy needs to be fixed,” Robinson said. “Secretary Carter has already indicated support for transgender service members; he needs to turn those words into action and order a top-down review to get to a policy that works for our military.”
The steps taken by the Army today offer no relief for over 9,000 transgender personnel serving in silence in the Air Force, Navy, or Marine Corps.
The Obama Administration has done major, major policy changes, from throwing out Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, to openly serving gay and lesbians on Active Duty.
Likewise for promoting/accepting Same-sex marriages with full benefits given different-sex couples.
So this is a big step, even though Robinson calls it stop gap. It is more than just stop gap – this prevents local commanders from letting their personal feelings discharged transgender personnel. Now the policy decision per transgender all go to the Assistant Secretary, Army wide all transgender will receive the same review.
If you call that Stop Gap – – I can understand why you are former military.