Washington (AP) – Air Force says to A New notes The recent expelling of transgender aviators under the Trump administration directive will eliminate the opportunity for a committee of colleagues to discuss their right to continue serving their country.
Tuesday’s memo said that the Military Separation Committee cannot independently decide whether to maintain or discharge a transgender airline, and that if Airman is not in line with the sexual gender of his or her gender, “we need to recommend segregation of members” if Airman is diagnosing gender discomfort.
Military legal experts advising transgender forces told The Associated Press that the new policies are illegal and are unaware of other services releasing similar memos, but fear that it will serve as a blueprint for the entire military. Advocacy groups say the change is threatening to undermine trust in military leadership.
This is the second policy change the Air Force has taken in recent weeks to crack down on transgender service members. Last week, the Associated Press reported that the Air Force had Refusing to early retirement benefits for transgender forces And they were moving to cancel requests that were already approved.
The Air Force refused to answer questions about policy and its legal implications.
The service provided a statement that the new guidance “is consistent with and responds to the Department of Defense policies regarding service members who show diagnosis, history or symptoms of gender discomfort.”
How the board normally works
The committee traditionally offers semi-legal hearings to determine whether service members are set up to depart. A fellow service member will hear evidence of what happened anyway and what a person’s personality, fitness and performance.
The hearing is not a formal court, but it has almost the same structure. Service members are often represented by lawyers, who can present evidence in the defense, and can appeal the Board’s findings to federal court.
Pentagon’s policy on separators Please note that you are entitled to a “fair and fair” hearing, which should be a “forum for presenting reasons why the supposed lawsuit should not be taken.”
This unbiased nature means that the board can sometimes reach surprising conclusions.
For example, three active Marines were retained, who were part of the mob that stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Commanders of USS McCain, a destroyer that collided with a Pacific oil tanker in 2017, did not recommend a separation in 2019.
Military lawyers condemn Air Force changes
“I have never seen an order like this,” said Priya Rashid, a military lawyer who has represented service members before hundreds of separation committees.
“I’ve seen people with three DUIs being held, people beat their wives being held. If they felt it was in the best interest of service, all sorts of people were held because the board was given the authority to hold anyone,” she said.
Rashid said she and other lawyers working with the transgender forces consider the board to automatically order separation based solely on a diagnosis or symptoms of gender discomfort.
She said it constitutes an illegal Air Force order and supports fairness.
“The instructions essentially say they don’t determine if someone has future potential in the service,” Rashid said.
The new Air Force Guidance also prohibits litigation records.
Rashid said the lack of independent transcripts would not only prevent Air Force leaders from reviewing the hearings, but would not only ensure that they are done properly, but would undermine a meaningful opportunity to appeal.
He made efforts to drive out transgender forces.
Pentagon officials say 4,240 units have been diagnosed with gender discomfort, and the military uses it as an identifier for being transgender.
pentagon We got the green light from the Supreme Court In May, we will move forward by banning all trans troops. Two options were offered. Volunteers are paying for one-time separations or being discharged from hospital at a later date without pay.
Some transgender forces have decided to fight to stay by relying on the board.
Senior Master Sergeant. Jamie Hash, who has served in the Air Force since 2011, said he “want to stand up to an objective committee that is evaluated for my long-standing proven capabilities.”
“I wanted to see the committees overseas and pentagonal challenges, deployment to various combat orders, service medals, sustainable operation and mission effectiveness,” she said in an interview.
But now, she said, “I feel that the path I have been in is more uncertain than ever.”
Logan Ireland, a master Air Force sergeant with 15 years of service, including deployment to Afghanistan, had planned to retire early until his request was rejected last week.
He then decided to stand up at the separation committee.
“I chose the unwilling route because I believed in my services, my records and the promise of a fair hearing judged by facts,” he said.
“Now that promise has been torn apart and replaced by a process designed to determine my destiny before walking through the room,” he said, adding, “What I’m looking for is the same fairness and justice that every service member deserves.”
Both Ireland and Hash said they have not yet heard from their direct boss about what the new policy means to them.
Lawyers are worried about setting precedents that will spread across the military.
Rashid said both the Army and the Navy are “looking at what the Air Force does as the standard for the law… This is the minimum legal standard for us to buy service members.”
Transgender forces warn that policies could have broader meaning
Space Force transgender officer Colonel Brie Fulham has long been seen as a leader in the transgender force, but argued that the policy is a threat to other service members.
Post onlineFulham said, “We will exchange judgments for automation.”
“Today, it’s gender discomfort. Tomorrow could be any condition or class that moment politics seeks,” she insisted.
The new policy was “built for fitness, deployment history, awards and commander input evidence – very important committees to be evaluated,” Fulham said, sending a message that performance is no longer related to staying in the military.
Cathy Marcello, interim director of the American Modern Military Association, said the change would add to “an increase in loss of trust.” The organization supports LGBTQ+ service members, military spouses, veterans, their families and allies.
“This is a signal that identity, not ability or achievement, determines who will dress up in uniform and who will get a fair shot,” she said.
