WASHINGTON Today, the American Military Partner Association ( AMPA ) joined forces with the Transgender American Veterans Association ( TAVA ) to release an unprecedented report highlighting the harm that the military's transgender ban continues to inflict on transgender service members and their families. This first of its kind report focuses on the impact the outdated transgender military regulations have on the entire family and includes personal stories from transgender service members and their families.
"Family members are often overlooked when discussing the ban on transgender troops, yet the harm caused by the ban impacts the entire military family," said AMPA President Ashley Broadway-Mack. "These military families are heartbreakingly forced to suffer and sacrifice far more than what should be asked of them. There is no valid reason transgender service members should be able to serve authentically. This unprecedented report amplifies the continued calls for Secretary Carter to order an immediate review of the outdated regulations and policies harming these military families."
"The Transgender American Veterans Association ( TAVA ) is proud to join AMPA in its efforts to aid our military members, veterans and their families in promoting an awareness of the disparity of care with transgenderism," said TAVA President Evan Young. "Both organizations are critical to advocacy for families that are denied medically necessary care that must be afforded to all military families. We believe AMPA brings a unique level of expertise to our efforts to help veterans and dependents achieve their true gender identity. Transition related care is not just a military member or veteran issue. Transgenderism can affect family members as well, and this partnership is a step closer to ending the discrimination."
The report notes, "As long as the military continues to enforce antiquated medical regulations, the entire family is subject to the ban's harmful impact. They are exposed to the same levels of risk, discrimination, and humiliation that transgender service members face, left with no choice but to serve in silence along with their service member. The entire family unit shares in the burden of having to live a double life, forced to keep their loved one's true gender identity concealed. Often times, they remain helpless, witnessing the pain and torment their loved one experiences as a result of overwhelming pressure from the ban."
The entire report can be read at www.MilitaryPartners.org/Transgender-Report
For more information about the American Military Partner Association and LGBT military families, please visit our home on the web at www.MilitaryPartners.org .
The American Military Partner Association, a non-profit and non-partisan organization, is the nation's largest organization for the partners, spouses, families, and allies of America's LGBT service members and veterans. Based in Washington DC, AMPA is committed to education, advocacy, and support for our modern military families."
The Transgender American Veterans Association ( TAVA ) acts proactively with other concerned LGBT organizations to ensure that transgender veterans receive appropriate medical care through the Department of Veterans Affairs ( VA ) and helps educate the VA and the Department of Defense ( DoD ) on issues regarding fair and equal treatment of transgender and transsexual individuals.