The ethical and legitimacy perspective of allowing transgender individuals to serve in integral platforms that extrapolate to political, social, and economic endeavors has been somewhat controversial. In this accord, the ethical debates that have sprouted from the legalization of transgender individuals to serve in the military are not startling. The opponents of the legitimization of transgender involvement in the army hold that such individuals are not physically fit to serve in the army. The advocates of allowing transgender people to serve in the military postulate that with the correct medical attention, a transgender individual can render their military obligations just like anyone else. In the United States setup, the recent granting of permission for transgender individuals to serve in the army has been met by vehement criticism. The opponents of the promulgation hypothesize that such a decision will have disabling and detrimental ramifications on the military (Hassan, 2016). Holistically, transgender individuals should be allowed to serve in the military, and those that are involved in the leadership of the military have vast experience of veterans and service men that allows them to hold such positions.
The Pentagon’s decision to lift the ban on transgender individuals serving in the military comes after a period in which the ban on transgender individuals serving in the military had been synonymous with military operations. On first June 2016, the Defense secretary at Pentagon, Ashton Carter, announced that transgender individuals could openly serve in the military. The criticism spiked almost immediately after the announcement with certain renowned analysts and experts stating that the Obama administration had made an irresponsible decision that could tremendously impact on the strength of the United States military. Nonetheless, the government held its position on the matter reiterating how the move is fundamental in not only lifting discrimination based on sexuality but also in fostering a significant spiral in the number of people that can be deemed ideal to serve in the military (Hassan, 2016).
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The promulgation to permit transgender individuals to serve in the military has been pounced upon by enormous criticism, but perhaps the most convincing evidence to the efficiency of a free trans army can be obtained from other countries. Military regulations and stature vary from one country to the other. Nonetheless, a few effective policies can be borrowed to make the United States security firm and effective in relation to its readiness to protect the country. Eighteen countries including New Zealand, Sweden, Australia, and Norway have established military recruitment regulations that do not consider sexuality as a determinant for legibility. Aaron Belkin, a renowned author of who sought to assess the implications of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell asserted that the inclusion of transgender in the army makes it stronger and better. Palm Center of Research conducted a study in 2013 focusing on the sexuality and gender in the military. The study sought to elucidate the impact of the regulation to lift the ban on transgender inclusion in the military and how the policy changed the military strength and readiness. The study concluded that despite the immense prejudice faced by transgender people serving in the army, the endeavor had not affected the military in its strength and readiness for battle (Hassan, 2016).
Arguments for Transgender Serving in Military
The United States has been dedicated to achieving a societal level that all people are treated equally. The misleading paradigm of perceiving some groups as superior to others has had broad and far-reaching ramifications on the society. In the pursuit to harmonize the disparities that exist in the society and make all people equal according to the law of the land, it has become increasingly paramount that the law protects all people. The regulation seeks to present all citizens as equals despite their race, religious affiliation, political group, and sexual grouping. In this accord, championing for equality should be across all platforms without exempting the military. Ultimately, implementation of policies that cut across all the setup would be paramount in ensuring that the American regulation lay tremendous emphasis on equality and ultimately fights against discrimination on the basis of sexual affiliations (Gross, 2015).
The inclusion of a transgender individual in the military may seem like a bold move, given the magnitude of public outcry that the endeavor has accrued, but the move is a step towards the eradication of discrimination on the basis of sexual affiliations. The number of people that would be legible for military recruitment would be increased thus bettering the military. Moreover, there are over 15,000 transgender individuals serving in the military. Therefore, the regulation gives the individuals a voice and a status since they can now serve openly. The rationale that transgender people are mentally challenged makes it justifiable that the recruitment process should consider such factors when grading the legibility of an individual to joining the army.
Empirical studies have demonstrated that the prevalence of recruiting transgender individuals into the military would be an emblem of a just and an ideal society that treats people with ultimate fairness. Recent medical discoveries have demonstrated that the previous postulation that transgender individuals have a mental condition has been a myth. In this accord, allowing transgender individuals to serve in the military fosters loyalty and patriotism since they perceive themselves as being valuable to the country just like anyone else (Gross, 2015).
Empirical studies have deduced that the prevalence and the predisposal of bisexual, gay, and lesbians, to suicide is not significantly different from that of transgender individuals. Holistically segregating transgender people in the recruitment to the military while allowing bisexual, lesbians, and gay individuals to join the military lack firm basis. It is worth noting that transgender individuals are relentlessly battling with a tough social atmosphere that makes them feel inferior. Therefore, allowing transgender individuals to serve in the forces would be integral in boosting their confidence thus allowing them to live and ultimately overtake the severity of the condition. The main argument submitted by the opponents of the regulation permitting transgender individuals to serve in the military has been the expense that would be imposed on the government for transition surgeries. Nonetheless, experts have deduced that only 2% of the transgender individuals would opt to go for surgeries annually. In this regard, the 2% is bound to be less expensive for the government (Hennigan, 2016).
Holistically, the military recruitment should be focussed on merit rather than on an individual’s sexual affiliation. The eradication of the discriminatory policies coupled with recruitment of military personnel would be integral in strengthening the army since the individuals that would be recruited are qualified and legible to serve the country in ways that are expected of them. According to transgender people, a formal recognition in the army would give them the courage to be bold in their decisions, be it on a leadership platform, or at the grassroots level. Ultimately, the move will boost the quality of service rendered by transgender individuals who have accrued vast veteran experience, since they believe that they are serving a population that does not view them according to their sexual orientation, but rather people that view them as experts and qualified military personnel.
Arguments Against Transgender Individuals Serving in the Military
A huge number of individuals from different backgrounds are allowed to operate in the military. Bisexuals, Gays, and lesbian individuals are included in the military by some countries while others resent the inclusion of people of such sexual orientations in the military. Nonetheless, some countries that allow the integration of bisexuals, lesbians, and gay individuals in the military impose stringent regulations that ban the inclusion of transgender people in the military. The core reason advanced to rationalize such discriminative regulations is the perception that transgender individuals have a mental condition. Nonetheless, transgender individuals have been identified to have the same level of mental abilities as lesbians and gay people. Therefore, the argument does not have substantial claims and grounds (Baldor, 2016).
The hypothesis that people with the mental condition may not be objective and the dogma that such individuals are incapable of making rational decisions has been the core argument as to why transgender individuals have been denied inclusion in the military. Due to the mental condition, transgender individuals are not considered fit for service. It is also important to note that transgender individuals are associated with lack of appropriate coping skills which predispose them to immense depression that deteriorates their mental stability. Moreover, transgender individuals have been shown to be more likely to attempt suicide as opposed to their healthy counterparts. Numerous studies have further depicted that those that undertake surgery are even more vulnerable to such disabling mental conditions. The therapy for the extent of the mental instability implores for the use of hormones to remedy the condition. However, the hormones infused have been established to worsen the condition by making transgender individuals less fit to serve in the army. Therefore, these pervasive problems experienced by a transgender person can affect the readiness and morale of the entire unit (Hassan, 2016).
Soldiers live in an environment that is intimate which propels the formation of close niches. The presence of a transgender individual in such relationships could be detrimental to the entire force since it could cause the loss of morale. Moreover, the opponents of transgender inclusion in the military also suggest that such an endeavor would be very expensive for the government since the transition surgery from man to woman, or vice versa could cost the state as much as $50,000. The increase in the expenses incurred by the government on transition surgeries could burden the already strained budget. The magnitude of the expense could be reduced through using the alternative approach, which is banning the inclusion of transgender individuals in the military.
Rationale For Hiring Transgender individuals
Ultimately, the debates about whether transgender people should be included in the army have aroused multiple arguments from the political, social, and economic platforms. The arguments advanced have captured the aspect of mental instability as the prime reason as to why the recruitment of transgender individuals into the army should be banned. Studies have depicted that the extent of depression suffered by bisexual individuals, lesbians, and gay people are equal to those experienced by the transgender individuals. Therefore, it is not a just and fair to recruit people of other sexual orientations and segregate against transgender individuals.
In conclusion, the inclusion of a transgender individual in the military is a fundamental step that depicts the move by the government to eradicate discrimination in the military service. The inclusion of transgender persons in the Defense Forces is a move that is justifiable since people with enormous experience and veterans can hold positions of leadership even if they are transgender individuals. It is irrational to deduce that transgender individuals experience more depression as compared to bisexuals or lesbians. Therefore, it would be unjustifiable to hire lesbian and gay people and segregate against transgender people. Holistically, hiring transgender individuals demonstrates equal rights for people despite their sexual orientations, and it also increases the morale of transgender individuals already serving in the army.
References
Baldor, L. C. (2016). First Transgender soldiers seek formal army recognition. Military.com. Retrieved from: http://www.military.com/daily-news/2016/10/24/first-transgender-soldiers-seek-formal-army-recognition.html .
Gross, R. E. (2015). What other countries can teach America about transgender military service. OUTWARD . Retrieved from: http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2015/08/10/transgender_military_service_lessons_from_around_the_world.html .
Hassan, W. (2016). From the community: is it really that bad if transgender individuals serve in the military? Chicago Tribune . Retrieved from: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/daily-southtown/community/chi-ugc-article-is-it-really-that-bad-if-transgender-individu-2016-07-06-story.html .
Hennigan, W. J. (2016). U.S. Military to allow transgender men and women to serve openly. Los Angeles Times . Retrieved from: http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-pentagon-transgender-ban-20160630-snap-story.html .
