Palm Center Statement on Associated Press Story, “Military Seeks More Time on Transgender Policy”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Aaron Belkin, director of the Palm Center, released the following statement regarding an Associated Press story posted late last night. According to AP, “Senior military leaders expressed deep concerns this week that the launch of new Pentagon rules allowing transgender service members to serve openly in the U.S. military is moving too quickly.”
In response, Belkin said:
“After dragging their feet for a year, some of the Chiefs are throwing up their hands as if they haven’t been given sufficient time to develop a plan. They are acting as though the issue was thrown at them at the last minute, when the reality is that the Services have been preparing for new policy for a year.
The research–including research from the RAND Corporation–is clear that implementing inclusive policy for transgender troops is not complicated. The Chiefs seem to be asking for another year because they don’t like the answer that the research has provided, not because more time is needed to sustain readiness.
Enough is enough. It is time for Secretary Carter to exercise leadership and bring the repeal process to a close.”
The Associated Press story, “Military Seeks More Time on Transgender Policy” follows news reports from earlier this week that indicated that the Department of Defense is poised to announce new, inclusive policy for transgender personnel as early as tomorrow, Friday, July 1st, 2016.
