The board president of the San Diego Human Dignity Foundation said Thursday that the lifting of a ban on transgender people serving in the military is a postitive step toward inclusion.
“The Pentagon lifting this ban gives trans people an opportunity to not only be trans — who they are, but also serve their country and not be seen as unpatriotic,” said Joselyn Harris, a transgender woman. “Other countries have already allowed trans people to serve in the military.”
Harris, who served in the U.S. Army from 1968-71 said many questions were left unanswered, however, including the criteria that will be used to determine someone’s “trans status.”
The decision to allow transgender people to serve in the military, effective immediately, was made by Defense Secretary Ash Carter, who studied the issue for a year. New members of the armed forces will need to have the same gender identity for 18 months before joining up.
Carter said he didn’t want issues that don’t have anything to do with an individual’s qualifications to prevent them from joining the military.
–City News Service
