The United States Army will no longer allow transgender people to enlist and will no longer provide gender-affirming care to service members, according to a social media announcement made Friday.
“The #USArmy will no longer allow transgender people to join the military and will discontinue performing or facilitating gender transition procedures for service members.
The announcement comes after President Trump signed an executive order on January 27 directing the Pentagon to develop a policy for transgender service members within 30 days.
According to the president’s order, expressing “a gender identity inconsistent with an individual’s sex conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle, even in one’s personal life” and those doing so “cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
According to a memo issued Feb. 7, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has halted the intake of recruits with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria as well as all gender-affirming care.
The memo is on the docket for a case in the D.C. District Court challenging the president’s executive order, which could result in a renewed ban on transgender troops.
Mr. Trump previously barred most transgender people from serving openly in the military during his first term, a policy that former President Joe Biden reversed shortly after taking office in January 2021.
“Transgender service members have been serving openly for almost ten years, and currently fill critical roles in every branch and specialty, including infantry, aviation, nuclear engineering, law enforcement, and military intelligence, many requiring years of specialized training and expertise,” SPARTA Pride, a nonprofit organization for trans service members and veterans, said in a statement when the executive order was issued. “…The readiness and physical capabilities of transgender service members is not different from that of other service members.”
The Army’s announcement follows another executive order from the president stating that the federal government only recognizes “two sexes, male and female.”
On Thursday, the National Park Service removed references to transgender and queer people from the Stonewall National Monument website, which is a park and visitor center in New York commemorating the birthplace of the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement in the United States.
