Federal Judge Halts Trump Administration Ban on Transgender Military Service

The ruling, effective March 21, criticizes the policy as discriminatory and lacking legal justification, reaffirming equality principles.

A federal judge in Washington suspended a Trump administration decree banning transgender individuals from military service, citing equality principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence.
The judge criticized the policy as 'hostile' and unjustified, stating it lacked legal or rational grounds for excluding transgender individuals from the armed forces.
The decree, signed by Donald Trump in January 2025, aimed to stop recruiting transgender individuals and expel those already serving, except under special exemptions.
This decision follows a history of policy reversals, including Joe Biden's 2021 reversal of Trump's first-term ban, which had allowed transgender individuals to serve openly in the military.
Approximately 15,000 transgender individuals currently serve in the U.S. military, representing a small fraction of the total two million service members.