Ban on transgender troops to be lifted July 1

[rangerrebew]

Ban on transgender troops to be lifted July 1
Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY 4:55 p.m. EDT June 24, 2016
 


WASHINGTON — The Pentagon plans to announce the repeal of its ban on transgender service members July 1, a controversial decision that would end nearly a year of internal wrangling among the services on how to allow those troops to serve openly, according to Defense officials.

Top personnel officials plan to meet as early as Monday to finalize details of the plan, and Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work could sign off on it by Wednesday, according to a Defense official familiar with the timetable but who spoke on condition of anonymity because officials were not authorized to speak publicly about it. Final approval would come from Defense Secretary Ash Carter, and the announcement will be on the eve of the Fourth of July weekend.

http://www.militarytimes.com/story/military/pentagon/2016/06/24/ban-transgender-troops-lifted-july-1/86351716/

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Newsmax
Pentagon Expected to Repeal Ban on Transgender Members Next Month
Friday, June 24, 2016 06:10 PM

By: REUTERS

The Pentagon plans to announce the repeal of its ban on openly serving transgender service members next month, U.S. defense officials said.

The repeal would come five years after a 2011 decision to end the U.S. military's ban on gays and lesbians serving openly, despite fears - which proved unfounded - that such a move would be too great a burden in wartime and would undermine readiness.

The disclosure came the same week that the U.S. Army formally welcomed its new secretary, Eric Fanning, who is the first openly gay leader of a military service branch in U.S. history.

One of the U.S. officials said parts of the repeal would come into effect immediately. But the plan would also direct each branch of the armed services to implement new policies affecting everything from recruiting to housing for transgender troops, the official said.

Republican Representative Mac Thornberry, chairman of the House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, said Defense Secretary Ash Carter had not answered questions the panel had asked, including about "readiness challenges" for transgender service members.

"If reports are correct, I believe Secretary Carter has put the political agenda of a departing administration ahead of the military's readiness crisis," Thornberry said in a statement.

Supporters of transgender rights cheered the news. Ashley Broadway-Mack, president of the American Military Partner Association, said in a statement: "Our transgender service members and their families are breathing a huge sigh of relief."

The National Center for Transgender Equality estimated last year that 15,000 trans people served in the U.S. military.