The Pentagon has issued a directive requiring the expulsion of service members and recruits diagnosed with gender dysphoria from the U.S. military, in accordance with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump last month.
The military is being given a 30-day window of time to figure out how to identify transgender personnel for discharge. This identification process could be done through self-reporting or reports by coworkers.
A Thursday memo to Defense Department leaders directs the military to have in place by March 26 procedures for identifying people diagnosed with or receiving treatment for gender dysphoria. After being identified, the military has to begin their discharge within 30 days.
This directive is the result of an executive order issued previously in Trump's presidency, which set the stage for banning transgender people from military service. But the policy has been met with legal resistance.
Preliminary estimates by U.S. officials indicate that hundreds of transgender troops could be flagged through medical records—a tiny number compared to the military's 2.1 million active-duty personnel.
Although the relatively small number, the policy has gained a lot of attention in the Pentagon, as President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth support the removal of transgendered individuals, with concerns that their medical conditions do not meet military standards.
Darin Selnick, the defense undersecretary for personnel, echoed this position in the memo, writing, "The medical, surgical, and mental health limitations on those who have an active diagnosis or history of, or show symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria are not compatible with the high mental and physical requirements required for military service."
The policy goes on to claim that military effectiveness and readiness are incompatible with transgender personnel experiencing difficulty during their transition, stating gender is "immutable, unchanging during a person's life."
Legal counsel for six transgender service members fighting the executive order contends that the policy shows "hostility" towards transgender individuals, treating them as "unequal and dispensable" while eroding their dignity among the public and their fellow service members.
Sarah Warbelow, the Human Rights Campaign's vice president for legal affairs, rapped the policy for putting service members in an awkward position, implying that it compels transgender troops to disclose their identities against their will.
"All of a sudden, you are going to have to out yourself. Other people are going to have to out you," Warbelow described.
She went on to state that according to the new directive, a transgender soldier in the military would have to be addressed as "he" and "sir" by her colleagues, no matter what her gender identity is.
"This leaves soldiers in the untenable position of either disobeying direct orders or ensuring the safety of their comrades," Warbelow said, further stating that transgender military personnel might feel forced to reveal their status to escape retribution for concealing information.
On Thursday, U.S. officials estimated that approximately 600 transgender personnel in the Navy and between 300 to 500 in the Army could be identified through medical records.
Read also| Trump's 'Gold Card' Offering Citizenship Set to Go on Sale in Two Weeks
