TRANSGENDER SOLDIERS.

[Danno 1,228]

Repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Doesn't End All Discrimination in the Military

"Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" is dead. Shout it from the rooftops, dance in the streets, and marvel at the prospect of gays, lesbians and bisexuals finally being able to serve our country openly and without shame someday very soon.

And when you’ve finished celebrating, come back in and roll up your sleeves, because there’s another group still suffering discrimination in the military, and their situation may be much more complicated and difficult to resolve than the question of gays and lesbians.

The group in question? Transgender soldiers. The military still practices extreme prejudice against transgender people, and considers any expression of non-normative gender behavior — anything, in other words, from cross-dressing to complete sex reassignment — to be evidence of a sickness. Even if you dress up in drag on your own time, off-base, if the military finds out about it, you can expect to be discharged. And even after you’ve completed your tour of duty and been honorably discharged, if you seek out help for transition therapy or medical benefits from the VA, you may run into brick walls of prejudice and even be refused service. Sometimes, if you do transition, you can even lose your status with the military, because they will consider you a different person from the one in their records.

Shocking, huh? Even as the Pentagon has made such great strides in its attitudes about gay and lesbian soldiers, and while some of our allies (including Canada and Australia) are actually looking for ways to revamp their policies and support their transgender soldiers, in the U.S. this is still a taboo subject.

The issue of transgender soldiers and veterans is one that has largely stayed under the radar — two years ago, a post on this site publicized exactly that issue, and the situation hasn’t improved since. But it’s a real issue, affecting real soldiers and veterans. Maybe now that DADT is dead, we can turn our attention to this other area of discrimination in our military.

Some light is already being shone. The Palm Center, a research institute which focuses on issues of gender and sexuality in the military, completed the first-ever survey of transgender military personnel in 2008, uncovering clear patterns of discrimination. The National Center for Transgender Equality also works to document the struggles of transgender people in our armed forces, and has compiled a list of recommendations that would bring change.

Most of all, we need to talk about this. The repeal of DADT marks a turning point in a long, hard battle not just within our military but also in the wider society, which has learned to see gay and lesbian people very differently through the course of this fight. Now, it’s time to make the same effort for our transgender friends and siblings. Their issues may seem even more alien to many people than those of gays and lesbians. But, like gay people, they are already putting their lives on the line, fighting for our freedom. And they, too, deserve the same respect and support as every other soldier.

http://gayrights.change.org/blog/view/repealing_dont_ask_dont_tell_doesnt_end_all_discrimination_in_the_military

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Maybe you should take up stamp collecting or something to help divert your obsession with homosexuals and other sexual oddities?

[Danno 1,228]

Maybe you should take up stamp collecting or something to help divert your obsession with homosexuals and other sexual oddities?

But then you'd have no topics to gravitate toward.

Don't you see, I am here for you.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

Those aren't purses, you maroon! Those are satchel charges.

[mawilson 2,133]

If that doesn't send the Taliban running for cover, I don't know what will.

"Mahmoud, I just got my аss kicked by a boy who used to be a girl. I am forever disgraced in the eyes of Allah. Banish me from all future Jihad missions!"