Ever since Donald J. Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States, the LGBTQ+ community has been against most of the decisions the commander in chief has made. Things did not change for the community over the summer when Trump announced his plan to reinstate a ban on the transgender community in the military. Fortunately for those individuals, a federal judge temporarily blocked this ban.
Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly issued a preliminary injunction on Oct. 30, which put Trump’s plans on hold. The decision allows those who identify as transgender to continue to serve in the nation’s military.
The beginning of the timeline in the case dates back to July of this past summer, when President Trump stated in a tweet that transgender people would not be able to serve in the United States military “in any capacity.”
The tweet caused a major uproar in the LGBTQ+ world, demanding that the ban not go into action. Luckily for the community, the judge granted their wishes.
Although the more extreme parts of the ban were blocked, the judge did uphold a small portion. The decision was to block government funds from being used for sex reassignment procedures.
Members of the Cabrini and LGBTQ+ community voiced their opinions on the issue, disagreeing with the ban largely.
Alyssa Jankowski, an alumna of the Body Image Coalition, believes that every American, despite their sexuality, should be given the same rights.
“It doesn’t matter how a person identifies themselves; if they want to serve our country, they should be given that right,” Jankowski said.
“It’s great that the judge blocked the ban,” Jose Rodriguez, director of student diversity, said. “I think anyone who has been granted certain rights should not have those rights taken away so suddenly,” Rodriguez said.
Cabrini senior Brandes Yenchick, who identifies as transgender, feels strongly about this issue, as his boyfriend is a transgender military member.
“I think the proposed ban is completely stupid,” Yenchick said. “Nine times out of 10, people join the military because they want to protect the country they love, so why should we ban them for doing that?”
Yenchick’s boyfriend, Sylis McHenry, is a transgender service member in the United States army reserve. He also disagrees with the ban and was offended when it was first proposed.
“The proposed ban on transgender service members is disrespectful to those who are currently and openly serving as transgender members,” McHenry said.
Although being a transgender service member has affected McHenry in many ways personally, it never has gotten in the way of his service to the country.
“Ever since I came out to my chain of command, they have given me overwhelming support,” McHenry said. “It was a lot for everyone to get used to, but they have taken steps to educate themselves properly,” McHenry said.
Transgender service members are safe for now to serve their country, but worry still looms that another ban could be brought to the table over time.
“Even if the ban is fully appealed, a new ban can always be proposed causing a constant fight, but I am more than willing to take every minute of every day to feel like the man I’m supposed to be,” McHenry said.
