As a trans feminine organizer, I am deeply committed to fighting against transphobia in all its forms. I am thus concerned with any attempts by the federal government to single out trans people as a problematic population, as Donald Trump did last week. This was made worse by the fact that the White House sent out an article advocating for conversion therapy as justification for the move.
However, I also understand that the US military is a deeply problematic and oppressive institution. During the "War on Terror," the US military has killed tens of thousands of innocent civilians, lied about the number of said civilian casualties, has actively supported repressive regimes and has often failed to hold perpetrators of war crimes accountable.
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In addition, the US military often uses empty language of "diversity" to give the illusion of progressivism. In fact, the current push for inclusion of trans people in the military, as groups like "No Justice, No Pride" have pointed out, was made by billionaires who wanted to "celebrate the US military."
The military is also known to exploit marginalized people's suffering to increase recruitment. It is for this reason that many of those who join the military come from a working-class background. Those who join are told that they'll get free healthcare and free college, so long as they kill in the name of the American Empire.
Trans people are particularly vulnerable to this tactic as we are four times more likely to live in poverty. It thus becomes very tempting for many low-income trans folks to join the military. Fighting for inclusion in the military only makes their cynical exploitation of trans pain easier.
Of course, none of this means that discrimination against trans people is a good thing. But it's entirely possible to oppose Trump's discriminatory actions while resisting the impulse to make militarism the center of trans liberation.
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Currently, the average life-expectancy for a trans woman of color in the Western Hemisphere is only around 35. Trans people also attempt suicide at about 10 times the rate of the normal population. About 50% of trans people will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime. Last but not least, we are much more likely to be low-income or homeless.
I haven't heard nearly as much anger about any of these issues than I have about the military ban. And yet, they are so much more important.
Ultimately, trans liberation needs to be about dismantling the capitalist, white-supremacist, patriarchal society that results in the marginalization of trans folks. We should thus seek to dismantle the power of oppressive institutions like the military, not assimilate into them.
