I have much love and respect for our trans vets as people who have not only served in our military, once they left the service, they took those leadership lessons they learned in the military to help build our community and advance our human rights .
So on this 2017 edition of Veterans Day, which is occurring at a time the Chump Trump Administration wants to keep trans people from serving in the biggest baddest military on our planet, I want to say thank you to all the 15,500 trans siblings currently on active duty across the planet, and those who spent time in the various branches of the service doing their part to serve our country.
While others revile you, I am inspired by you. I am deeply appreciative of the fact that because of you, I have the freedoms I do to not only live my unapologetically out and proud trans life, I get to call people out on a regular basis up to and including the POTUS and not be jailed for it (yet).
You know as I do that when a socially reviled group gains acceptance in military circles, the advancement of their human rights in American society swiftly follows. It's why I stand with you in opposing Trump's military ban and the conservafools are desperately trying to enact it.
Some of you are blazing trails within our military and reaching new leadership heights within the various service branches. Others of you are doing the educating and advocacy work inside the military about what we trans folks can do while serving our country.
Thank you also for taking the time to be leaders in our community. Some of you blazed trails while doing so. You created our pride flag. You helped organize conferences that set the parameters on how we talk about and advocate for our issues and organized lobby days. You founded organizations that pushed the trans human rights agenda forward. Others of you through bold actions took down unjust anti-0trans laws and policies.
And many of you trans vets continue to do so today.
Happy Veterans Day! Thank you for your service to our country and our community. You are #TransExcellence personified
"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice."-'The US Armed Forces Oath of Enlistment
This is bittersweet Veteran's Day for me as a supporter of our trans vets and many of my trans friends who served or are currently serving in the military.
This is the first Veteran's Day in which trans people could openly serve in our nation's armed forces. Unfortunately it is also coming a few days after a devastating presidential election in which a president-elect will take office with people whispering in his ears to take our ability to serve our country away as they roll back our human rights.
As my homegirl and Army vet Carla Lewis has famously said, "I defended your right to hate me."
You also defended the country against enemies foreign and domestic, and right now we have domestic enemies of our nation masquerading as patriots, but are anything but that.
Trans vets have also followed the example of Christine Jorgensen, Phyllis Frye, Monica Helms, Fallon Fox, Shane Ortega, Logan and Laila Ireland and countless others who served in all the branches of our military who took the leadership skills they learned in our nation's military and applied them into leading our community in various ways in our trans human rights struggle.
Thank you for your service trans vets that also includes in many cases you being leaders in our community. Thank you for not only defending the Constitution and our nation, but also fighting for the policies that will benefit us and all Americans cis and transgender.
Today is Veteran's Day, the day in which we celebrate and honor our military veterans who either served or are currently serving in our military. Some of those folks are trans people who as Carla Lewis' shirt says, fought for your right to hate us.
Those trans folks who fought for your freedom and right to hate us served in war and in peacetime. Many of them honed their leadership skills while serving in the armed forces, and we as a community have benefited from people like Monica Helms, Christine Jorgensen, Phyllis Frye, Autumn Sandeen stepping up to provide leadership when we trans people sorely needed it.
It is estimated there are 15,000 trans people currently serving in our military around the globe, and the wonderful thing I can report on Veterans Day 2015 is that in a few months they will be able to do so openly. It also means that at the moment open trans military service becomes a reality, trans people who wish to serve for whatever reason will be able to enlist in the service of their choice.
We have some amazing people serving our country right now like Sgt. Shane Ortega, Laila Villanueva and her fiance Logan Ireland, Rae Nelson, Jacob Eleazer and countless others who are serving with distinction in their various service branches while living as their true selves.
Happy Veterans Day Trans Vets! Thank you for your service. Thank you for also representing girls and guys like us in our armed forces, and deeply appreciate your trailblazing efforts that will make it easier one day for the trans kids who wish to follow in your footsteps and serve our country to do the same.
It's November 11 and once again it's time to acknowledge the veterans in our country who are also members of the trans community.
One of the interesting dynamics I've noted in our trans ranks is as Kristin Beck is a concrete example of, the number of trans folks who have served in our nation's military.
They have served our nation proudly, but in far too many cases they have had to hide who they are to do so. And because of DOD regulations that can be eliminated with a pen stroke, trans people are not allowed to enlist.
The veterans I have met in our community have fought in every conflict from World War II to Afghanistan and Iraq.
And lets take a moment to remember our trans vets who never came home or lost their lives before they came to that gender epiphany.
Many of those vets took those leadership lessons they learned in the military and translated them to help build our trans rights movement like Phyllis Frye. Monica Helms and Angela Brightfeather in 2003 founded TAVA, the Transgender American Veterans Assn..
Even Christine Jorgensen, one of our iconic trans women, was a US Army vet.
And we have trans folks who served who are continuing that tradition by contributing their leadership skills to build our community like Angelica Ross, Dawn Wilson, Autumn Sandeen, Fallon Fox and Rev. Yeshua Holiday
And if ten nations allow trans people to openly serve, what's wrong with the alleged biggest baddest military on the planet doing so? As I said back on this date in 2012 and will repeat, 'If it's not acceptable for LGB military personnel to have to hide who they are to serve our nation's military, it damned sure isn't acceptable for transpeople to have to hide to serve in the military either. '
Let's hope that we will see a Veteran's Day happen in which our trans peeps can serve our country.
Today is Veterans Day in the US, and once again I get to express my love, gratitude and appreciation to the over 140,000 trans vets according to a Williams Institute survey who served our nation, are still serving in silence, or who paid the ultimate price in our nations' armed forces.
As I constantly remind people and will not allow the LGB community to forget until that is rectified, the 2011 repeal of DADT did nothing for trans people.
Unlike transpeople in nine nations, transpeople in the United States who wish to do so are banned from sering in our armed forces.
As many of you know I support open military service for trans people, and support the efforts of the new organization SPART*A that formed July 22 to make that a reality.
Trans veterans not only served our nation, they have and continue to
provide principled and solid leadership for not only their fellow veterans, but our trans community and all the communities they intersect and interact with. And yes, many of the trans community's leaders and icons such as the
late Christine Jorgensen have the common thread of having served in our
nation's armed forces.
Trans veterans have
not only helped to fight for expanded human rights laws for all Americans, but
policies that help make the lives of people in the trans community and veterans like
themselves better.
Happy Veterans Day trans vets! Thank you for your service to our nation and to our community.
Today is Veterans Day in the US in which we remember the service of all our men and women who served or are currently serving in our nations military
I wanted to particularly remember a segment of the tran population that doesn't get much love shown their way, but will always get it on the TransGriot pages in terms of our trans vets.
The trans vets I have had the pleasure of meeting in the years I've been involved in the trans human rights fight have served in every conflict from the Korean and Vietnam Wars to Iraq and Afghanistan.
Many has moved on from their military service to become leaders in our trans human rights movement and our communities such as Monica Helms and Angela Brightfeather of TAVA, Dionne Stallworth, Dawn Wilson, Angelica Ross, Autumn Sandeen, Phyllis Frye and now Allyson Robinson as the Executive Director of the newly merged Out Serve-SLDN.
Trans veterans not only served our nation, they have and continue to provide principled and solid leadership for our community. They have not only helped to fight for human rights laws for all Americans, but things that help make the lives of the trans community and veterans like themselves better.
Trans veterans are also front and center in the fight to ensure that the DADT repeal that they worked for but didn't include us will be expanded. They want transpeople who wish to openly serve our country to have the ability to do so.
If it's not acceptable for LGB military personnel to have to hide who they are to serve our nation's military, it damned sure isn't acceptable for transpeople to have to hide to serve in the military either. Neither is it okay for those transpeople who wish to join our nation's military to automatically be excluded from doing so when they walk into an armed forces recruiting center to do so.
It's why I not only have much love for trans vets, but support their fight to openly serve our country. like transpeople in eight nations including Canada can do right now.
Happy Veterans Day transvets! Thank you for you service to our nation and our community.
Before he and the FLOTUS hopped aboard Air Force One to start a nine day trip to Asia and the Pacific Rim, President Obama was at Arlington National Cemetery laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and thanking veterans for their service..
Remarks by the President on Veterans Day
11:40 A.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Ric Shinseki, for your extraordinary
service to our country and your tireless commitment to our veterans; to
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta; to Chairman Dempsey and Mrs.
Dempsey; to our wonderful veterans service organizations for the
extraordinary work that you do for our nation’s heroes; to all who tend
to and watch over this sacred cemetery; and above all, to every active
duty member, Guardsman, Reservist, and veteran of the United States
Armed Forces.
There are many honors and responsibilities that come with this
job. But none are more humbling than serving as your
Commander-in-Chief. And I’m proud to be with so many of you here
today.
Here, where our heroes come to rest, we come to show our
gratitude. A few moments ago, I laid a wreath to pay tribute to all who
have given their lives to our country. For even though this is a day
we rightly honor America’s veterans, we gather today in solemn respect
-– mindful that we are guests here; mindful that we share this hallowed
space with a family’s moment of quiet grief; mindful that many veterans
not far from here are tracing their fingers over black granite for
friends who never came home –- and expect us to do all we can to bring
every missing American service member home to their families.
To all our nation’s veterans: Whether you fought in Salerno or
Samarra, Khe Sanh or the Korengal, you are part of an unbroken chain of
men and women who have served this country with honor and distinction.
On behalf of a proud and grateful nation, we thank you.
When I spoke here on this day two years ago, I said there would
be a day before long when this generation of servicemen and women would
begin to step out of uniform. And I made them a promise. I said that
when your tour ends, when you see our flag, when you touch our soil -–
you will be home in an America that is forever here for you, just as
you’ve been there for us. (Applause.)
For many, that day has come. Over the past decade, more than 5
million Americans have worn the uniform of the United States Armed
Forces. Of these, 3 million stepped forward after the attacks of
September 11th, knowing full well that they could be sent into harm’s
way. And in that time, they have served in some of the world’s most
dangerous places. Their service has been selfless. Their
accomplishments have been extraordinary.
In Iraq, they have battled a brutal insurgency, trained new
security forces and given the Iraqi people the opportunity to forge a
better future. In Afghanistan, they have pushed back the Taliban,
decimated al Qaeda, and delivered the ultimate justice to Osama bin
Laden. In concert with our allies, they have helped end Qaddafi’s
brutal dictatorship and returned Libya to its people.
Because of their incredible efforts, we can stand here today
and say with confidence -– the tide of war is receding. In just a few
weeks, the long war in Iraq will finally come to an end. (Applause.)
Our transition in Afghanistan is moving forward. My fellow Americans,
our troops are coming home. (Applause.)
For many military families, this holiday season will be a
season of homecomings. And over the next five years, more than 1
million Americans in uniform will transition back to civilian life,
joining the nearly 3 million who have done so over the past decade and
embraced a proud new role, the role of veteran.
This generation of service members -– this 9/11 Generation -–
has borne the burden of our security during a hard decade of sacrifice.
Our servicemen and women make up less than 1 percent of Americans, but
also more than 1 million military spouses and 2 million children and
millions more parents and relatives -- all of whom have shared the
strains of deployment and sacrificed on behalf of the country that we
love.
Only 27 years old on average, these young men and women have
shattered the false myth of their generation’s apathy, for they came of
age in an era when so many institutions failed to live up to their
responsibilities. But they chose to serve a cause greater than their
selves. They saw their country threatened. But they signed up to
confront that threat. They felt some tug, they answered some call, and
they said, Let’s go. And they’ve earned their place among the greatest
of generations. (Applause.)
That is something for America to be proud of. That is the
spirit America needs now -- a stronger, newer spirit of service and of
sacrifice. That spirit that says, What can I do to help? What can I do
to serve? That spirit that says, When my country is challenged, I will
do my part to meet that challenge.
So on this Veterans Day, let us commit ourselves to keep making
sure that our veterans receive the care and benefits that they have
earned; the opportunity they defend and deserve; and above all, let us
welcome them home as what they are -- an integral, essential part of our
American family. (Applause.)
See, when our men and women sign up to become a soldier or a
sailor, an airman, Marine, or Coast Guardsman, they don’t stop being a
citizen. When they take off that uniform, their service to this nation
doesn’t stop, either. Like so many of their predecessors, today’s
veterans come home looking to continue serving America however they
can. At a time when America needs all hands on deck, they have the
skills and the strength to help lead the way.
Our government needs their patriotism and sense of duty. And
that’s why I’ve ordered the hiring of more veterans by the federal
government. (Applause.) Our economy needs their tremendous talents and
specialized skills. So I challenged our business leaders to hire
100,000 post-9/11 veterans and their spouses over the next few years and
yesterday, many of these leaders joined Michelle to announce that they
will meet that challenge. (Applause.)
Our communities have always drawn strength from our veterans’
leadership. Think of all who have come home and settled on in a quiet
life of service -- as a doctor or a police officer, an engineer or an
entrepreneur, as a mom or a dad -- and in the process, changed countless
lives. Other veterans seek new adventures from taking on a new
business to building a team of globetrotting veterans who use skills
learned in combat to help after a natural disaster.
There are also so many in this young generation who still feel
that tug to serve, but just don’t quite know where to turn. So on this
Veterans Day, I ask every American, recruit our veterans. If you’re a
business owner, hire them. If you’re a community leader -- a mayor, a
pastor or a preacher -- call on them to join your efforts. Organize
your community to make a sustained difference in the life of a veteran
because that veteran can make an incredible difference in the life of
your community.
If you’re a veteran looking for new ways to serve, check out
Serve.gov. If you’re a civilian looking for new ways to support our
veterans and our troops, join Michelle and Jill Biden at
JoiningForces.gov. Find out what you can do. There is no such thing as
too small a difference. That effort you make may have the biggest
impact.
I say this because recently, I received a letter from a Vietnam
veteran. She wasn’t writing to tell me about her own experience. She
just wanted to tell me about her son, Jeremy. Now, Jeremy isn’t
deployed, Jeremy’s not a veteran, or even in the military at all, as
badly as he wants to follow in the footsteps of his family and enlist.
You see, Jeremy has Down Syndrome.
So Jeremy chooses to serve where he can best -– with his local
Vietnam Veterans of America chapter in Beaver, Pennsylvania. He calls
them “the soldiers”. And one day last spring, Jeremy spent the day with
several of these veterans cleaning up a local highway.
“He worked tirelessly,” wrote his mother. “He never asked to
take a break. He didn’t stop to talk about his beloved Steelers. He
didn’t even ask for anything to eat or drink. He only asked for one
thing, several times –- ‘Mom, will President Obama be proud of me for
helping the soldiers?’”
Well, Jeremy, I want you to know, yes, I am proud of you. I
could not be prouder of you, and your country is proud of you. Thank
you for serving our veterans by helping them to continue their service
to America.
And Jeremy’s example -- one young man’s example -- is one that
we must all now follow. Because after a decade of war, the nation we
now need to build is our own. And just as our Greatest Generation left a
country recovering from Depression and returned home to build the
largest middle class in history, so now will the 9/11 Generation play a
pivotal role in rebuilding America’s opportunity and prosperity in the
21st century.
We know it will be hard. We have to overcome new threats to
our security and prosperity, and we’ve got to overcome the cynical
voices warning that America’s best days are behind us. But if there is
anything our veterans teach us, it’s that there is no threat we cannot
meet; there is no challenge we cannot overcome. America’s best days are
still ahead. And the reason for that is because we are a people who
defy those voices that insist otherwise. We are a country that does
what is necessary for future generations to succeed. (Applause.)
You, our veterans, fight so our children won’t have to. We
build and we invent and we learn so that we will know greater
opportunity. America leads so that the next generation, here and around
the world, will know a more hopeful life on this Earth.
So today, I thank you all for making that possible. God bless
you. God bless our veterans and our troops, and God bless the United
States of America. (Applause.)
