Assuming that President Donald Trump came to the conclusion for various reasons, petty or profound, that those defined by the broad term “transgender” should not be accepted in the military, there exists a way to promulgate this that either minimizes emotional harm or exacerbates it. Those who fit this category live difficult lives, one measure of this being attempted suicides. According to this survey, by the UCLA Williams Institute:
The prevalence of suicide attempts among respondents
to the National Transgender Discrimination Survey
(NTDS), conducted by the National Gay and Lesbian
Task Force and National Center for Transgender Equality,
is 41 percent, which vastly exceeds the 4.6 percent of
the overall U.S. population who report a lifetime suicide
attempt, and is also higher than the 10-20 percent
of lesbian, gay and bisexual adults who report ever
attempting suicide. Much remains to be learned about
underlying factors and which groups within the diverse
population of transgender and gender non-conforming
people are most at risk
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This was an extensive study with multiple categories of physical transition, socio-economic status and interpersonal relationships. This is a liberal website with generally strong support for the cultural changes that have expanded acceptance of previously marginalized groups over most of our lifetimes. My point is more narrow, whether or not the reasons expressed by the President are valid, his way of announcing this decision was unconscionable.
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It is unlikely that those who are currently members of the military will be summarily discharged, as that would certainly be seen as gratuitously cruel, seen as such except for those with the most pathological hatred towards this group. Not only was the retention of existing transgendered military members not defined in the tweet, but when the spokesperson for the President was asked about this stated, “This will be worked out in the future and has not been determined.”
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The message to those now in the service, those who have been accepted by their superiors and peers, is immediately thrown into uncertainty, as the legitimacy of their status is placed in doubt. Certainly a President has the authority to do this, and there was an investigation of the issues he brought up ongoing. His tweet had no actual effect, as it wasn’t an official order. This article in Politico, describing the Chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff response : 'No modifications' to transgender policy from Trump tweet, :
Marine Gen. Joe Dunford also wrote in the message, which was sent to the chiefs of the military branches and senior enlisted leaders, that the military will continue to “treat all of our personnel with respect.”
“I know there are questions about yesterday's announcement on the transgender policy by the President,” Dunford wrote in the internal communication, a copy of which was provided to POLITICO. “There will be no modifications to the current policy until the President's direction has been received by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary has issued implementation guidance.”
“In the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect. As importantly, given the current fight and the challenges we face, we will all remain focused on accomplishing our assigned missions,” he continued.
If this was not an official order, what was it? It was a message to his political base; and written without much thought. A sense of belonging is something that is profoundly important to those whose sexual identity is uncertain and have found a home in the military. When a person is thrown into despair, as this research shows there is increased danger harm to self, as well as, depending on the circumstances, to others.
What is most tragic is in all likelihood this man, this President, never even gave the extent of harm this tweet has done a single moment’s thought.