In a series of tweets Wednesday morning, President Donald Trump announced that transgender individuals will no longer be allowed to serve in the military.
In his tweets, Trump wrote the military would be burdened with high medical costs and that transgender people would be a disruption.
After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
....Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military. Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming.....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
....victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail. Thank you
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
It’s unclear how Trump plans to carry out his ban. Transgender individuals already serve in the U.S. military.
"No American, no matter their sexual orientation or gender identity, should be prohibited from honor + privilege of serving our nation," wrote U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., on Twitter.
No American, no matter their sexual orientation or gender identity, should be prohibited from honor + privilege of serving our nation #LGBT
— Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen) July 26, 2017
Ros-Lehtinen, who has a transgender son, has been one of the more vocal politicians in South Florida about transgender rights.
Joshua Block, senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, released a statement in reaction to Trump's ban.
"The thousands of transgender service members serving on the front lines for this country deserve better than a commander-in-chief who rejects their basic humanity," he said.
A2016 study commissioned by the Pentagonfound health costs related to transgender service members would be relatively low.
"This has been studied extensively, and the consensus is clear: There are no cost or military readiness drawbacks associated with allowing trans people to fight for their country," said Block.
This is the latest in what many in the LGBTQ community and advocacy circles say is an attempt by the Trump administration to roll back hard-fought advancements and protections, despite the president's declaration while running for office that he would protect LGBTQ citizens.
