A federal judge has halted President Donald Trump's directive that aimed to prevent transgender individuals from joining or serving in the military. Judge Ana Reyes from Washington, D.C., determined that the ban breaches the equal protection clause by discriminating based on transgender status and gender.
Reyes criticized the ban, describing it as filled with hostility and stating that it demeans transgender individuals by labeling them as inherently unfit. She noted the irony that many transgender service members have risked their lives to protect the very rights the ban seeks to deny.
The judge has temporarily paused her injunction until Friday, allowing the administration time to appeal. Reyes suggested that a policy could be crafted to balance military readiness with equal protection rights, but asserted that the current ban does not achieve this balance.
The White House and the Justice Department have not yet responded to requests for comment. Shannon Minter, from the National Center for Lesbian Rights, praised Reyes for acting swiftly to protect troops from the ban's negative effects, describing it as driven by bias. Minter highlighted that the plaintiffs include decorated military personnel from multi-generational military families.
Trump's recent order is more restrictive than a previous policy, which allowed transgender individuals already serving to continue doing so and receive necessary medical care if they had come out before the ban. The new policy bars transgender people from enlisting and mandates the military to identify those with a history or symptoms of gender dysphoria, leading to their disqualification and removal from service.
In January, two LGBTQ legal organizations filed a lawsuit against Trump's order on behalf of several transgender service members and individuals wishing to enlist, arguing that the ban reflects prejudice against transgender people.
During hearings, Judge Reyes questioned Justice Department attorney Jason C. Lynch about the language used in the order, which she suggested was biased against the transgender community. Lynch did not provide a direct answer.
Defense Department memos indicate that service members will be required to use pronouns and titles that correspond with their birth gender. Reyes challenged Lynch on how this impacts military readiness, dismissing the notion that it does.
Jo Yurcaba and Chloe Atkins are reporters covering related topics.