COMMON DEFENSE RESPONDS to NEW PENTAGON POLICY AIMing TO PURGE TRANSGENDER SERVICE MEMBERS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 27, 2025
PRESS CONTACT: press@commondefense.us
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Common Defense is responding to the Pentagon’s newly announced policy, which aims to purge the armed forces of transgender service members. This new policy exceeds the harm and disrespect of the first Trump administration’s ban, which at least allowed troops already serving before the policy was implemented to remain in uniform. Now, under the policy issued last night, currently serving transgender service members face wrongful discharge within 30 days unless they obtain an arbitrary waiver.
This policy is not only unjust, but it is also a clear and direct attack on the value of diversity that has always made our military stronger. It disregards the sacrifices of transgender service members who have served honorably and threatens our military readiness by removing trained, capable personnel based on nothing other than political extremism.
For more than a decade, transgender service members have served openly and honorably in every branch of our armed forces, sacrificing for our nation. This new policy doesn’t just erase their contributions—it shatters the dreams of every transgender American who once aspired to wear the uniform and serve. That dream is now being stripped away.
Common Defense members and staff issued the following statements in response:
“This is the same garbage bigotry that people were spouting to keep the military racially segregated in the 1940s, trying to keep women from serving in combat roles, and to justify keeping gays and lesbians from serving our country through Undesirable Discharges and Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. This policy will harm military readiness by forcing out qualified and trained military members, and it is a betrayal to those brave men and women who raised their right hand to serve this country.” — Jacob Thomas, US Air Force veteran and Communications Director for Common Defense.
“Transgender people have served in the US military since its very beginnings and will continue to serve honorably and make our country proud. For a time, we even had the right to serve openly. To have our service now characterized as dishonorable for no other reason than our transgender status is open cruelty and fails to adhere to the highest traditions of military service. This shame will haunt our military for decades, as the scars and harms of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell still do today.” — Lene Mees de Tricht, US Navy & US Coast Guard veteran.
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Common Defense Civic Engagement is a grassroots, veteran-led organization (501c4) that was founded in 2016. We empower veterans to stand up for our communities against the rising tide of racism, hate, and violence, to organize against the entrenched powers that have rigged our economy, and to champion an equitable and representative democracy, where “liberty and justice” truly is for all. For too long, politicians from both political parties have attempted to use veterans as unwilling political props, and Common Defense serves as a home for veterans to organize and speak for themselves and support the candidates who truly share our values.