Two-thirds of troops support allowing transgender service members in the military, Pentagon study...
Source: Military Times
A Defense Department-funded study published Feb. 18 in the journal Sexuality Research and Social Policy has found that about 66 percent of active-duty soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines support the idea of serving alongside transgender personnel.
Breaking down data from nearly 500 responses, researchers found that across demographics ― regardless of ethnicity, sexuality or gender ― more than half of every group also supported allowing transgender Americans to serving in the military.
Arguments against integration have been historically disproven through research examining the integration of women, racial/ethnic minorities and [lesbian, gay and bisexual] persons into the U.S. military, the study authors wrote, comparing the transgender ban to past bans on service for other demographics.
On April 12, the Pentagon drew a line in the sand, barring any current service members from transitioning to their preferred gender, while banning any transgender recruits unless they submit to serving as their biological sex.
The policy is a complete reversal of Obama administrations 2016 lifting of the ban on transgender service members, after which DoD rolled out policies allowing existing troops to serve openly and work out a transition plan with their doctors, if they chose.
Read more: https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/02/27/two-thirds-of-troops-support-allowing-transgender-service-members-in-the-military-pentagon-study-finds/?fbclid=IwAR0WWdqao17__3KBwc7UxrpS3Zjnb3fhC9_iLJyci83NjMOZXIXuu1VzSpc
Spc. Alex Ketchum, then an infantryman with 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas, officially changed her gender marker in 2017. (Photo courtesy Spc. Alex Ketchum)