Gender Equality

Today's News about Gender Equality

Target pushes for U.S. government to punish churches and Christian business owners
Source: The American Family Association
May 1, 2019
The so-called "Equality Act" is nothing more than a repackaged version of the Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA). This legislation has been driven for years by rabid homosexual activist groups like Human Rights Campaign and is specifically designed to place sexual liberty above religious liberty and the First Amendment.

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Key Committee Approves Equality Act, House Must Follow Suit
Source: The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
May 1, 2019
“Discrimination is wrong and runs counter to the fundamental American values of freedom and equality. Today’s committee vote takes us one step closer to ensuring equal opportunity and dignity for all LGBTQ individuals in America. We applaud Chairman Nadler and Congressman Cicilline for their leadership, and committee members for rejecting amendments that would dilute the legislation’s protections. The Equality Act is long overdue, and the House of Representatives must pass the bill.”

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LEADING RETAILERS URGE PASSAGE OF EQUALITY ACT
Source: Retail Industry Leaders Association
May 1, 2019
"RILA appreciates the opportunity to work with members of the Judiciary committee and stakeholders to advance this important legislation that promotes opportunity and inclusion in America’s workforce. Retail is the first job, second chance, or third act for millions of American workers. RILA and our members are committed to ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for all people, whether they are employees, customers, or business partners. We urge the House to pass this important legislation that will help retailers continue to shape an inclusive workforce that is diverse, skilled, and innovative.”

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WHY IS THE EQUALITY ACT IMPORTANT TO THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY?
Source: National LGBTQ Taskforce
May 1, 2019
Currently, there are no explicit federal protections from discrimination protecting the LGBTQ community. This means that in 30 states, LGBTQ people can be denied housing, jobs, service in public spaces and more, solely because of who they are. This is an issue of national urgency.

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Historic Committee Vote Advances the Equality Act Toward House Floor
Source: Transequality.org
May 1, 2019
The Equality Act—a landmark civil rights bill that would clarify and strengthen basic protections to LGBTQ people nationwide—was successfully voted out of the House Judiciary Committee today.

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Our time is NOW We Will Ratify the Equal Rights Amendment
Source: National Organization for Women
May 1, 2019
The ERA, which was first introduced nearly 100 years ago, would be a strong prohibition against any government action that would discriminate on the basis of sex. Furthermore, it would encourage the adoption of other laws and policies that aim to end sex-based discrimination. There is abundant evidence that those in power often seek to pass laws or promote policies that disadvantage women. The ERA would be a powerful antidote to those abuses, particularly those aimed at immigrant women, women working in low-wage jobs, women of color, women with disabilities and the LGBTQIA community.

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Tell The Truth About ERA
Source: Eagle Forum
May 1, 2019
Democrats led a sham hearing on the Equal Rights Amendment. The House Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties chose six panelists to argue the points in favor of the ERA. The panel was stacked in Democrats’ favor. The panelists included two Democrat Congresswomen, one ERA activist, one liberal celebrity, and one professor of law. While the professor, Elizabeth Foley, argued that the ERA would not hold up in court due to the seven-year deadline that passed in 1979, she expressed her support for the substance of the amendment. ERA opponents were shut out and not allowed to give testimony.

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Patricia Arquette, Alyssa Milano Join Members and Advocates in Call for ERA
Source: Jackie Speier (D-CA, 14th)
May 1, 2019
Congresswoman Speier is the House sponsor of H.J. Res. 38, the ERA joint resolution to remove the arbitrary deadline to ratify that was included in the preamble of the original constitutional amendment in 1972. The United States is just one state shy of meeting the three-fourths threshold set by Congress for ratification of the ERA

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Rosen Holds Equality Act Press Conference with LGBTQ Nevadans, Calls on Congress to Pass the Equality Act
Source: Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
April 23, 2019
“It is shameful that in this day and age members of the LGBTQ community still face discrimination. I am a proud cosponsor of the Equality Act, which explicitly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in education, employment, housing, credit, jury service, public accommodations, and the use of federal funds.” said Senator Rosen. “This Administrations recent ban of transgender individuals from military service is the latest in a long line of assaults on the rights and liberties of LGBTQ people. I will continue to support legislation that promotes respect and tolerance for all of our fellow Americans."

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Gay Adoption

Today's News About Gay Adoption

Christian adoption agency in Michigan reverses LGBTQ policy
by: The Hill
April 23, 2019
A Christian adoption agency in Michigan announced that it would be changing a longstanding policy and will now allow LGBTQ parents to adopt.

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Federal Court Punishes Philly Faith-Based Foster Care Agency Over Biblical Views on Marriage
by: CBN News
April 22, 2019
A federal appeals court has upheld a new Philadelphia city policy that forbids Catholic Social Services from placing foster children with families due to the agency's longstanding religious beliefs about marriage.

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Girl Knees Boy In Groin Blocking Her Bathroom Door

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by: Public Advocate USA

Fairbanks, AK - April 18, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- "This is what happens when you have liberals running the school system and eliminating one entire sex, the entire female gender, off of the human race in favor of political correctness, " says Eugene Delgaudio, president of Public Advocate.

WCNC reports:

A girl was suspended by her high school after kneeing a boy in the groin after a group of boys went into the girls' bathroom and blocked the door, according to reports.

The Fairbanks Daily News Miner reported Rep. Tammie Wilson, R-North Pole, criticized North Pole High School for the act.

"I said, 'Good for her,'" Wilson said. "I would have taught my daughter to do the same."

The seven boys reportedly went into the girls' bathroom to protest their bathroom being used by another student who is transitioning from female to male, KUTV reported.

The female student felt threatened, so she kneed one of the boys in the groin. He was sent to the hospital for his injury, KUTV said.

The transgender student and the female student were not connected, the station said.

The school district defended its actions: "We don't advocate violence as a means for students to attain safety. If a student does use force, we have to evaluate that incident."

Democrats Vote to Protect Transgender Troops

by: Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Delaware at Large)

Washington, D.C. - March 28, 2019 - (The Ponder News) -- Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-AL) issued the following statement voting protect transgender members of our armed forces.

“No one with the strength and determination to serve in our military should ever be turned away because of who they are. Transgender service members serve with distinction and are prepared to make the sacrifice to our nation. The Trump Administration’s ban on transgender individuals serving in uniform is misguided, discriminatory, and contrary to our values. Despite their honorable commitment, this ban demeans their service and must be ended,” said Congresswoman Blunt Rochester. “By voting to end this ban, we met prejudice with love and intolerance with support. Today, we took an important step forward in fighting for equality, protecting the dignity of our military, and affirming the values that our country stands for.”

See Also:

Brooks Votes Against Taxpayer Funding for Gender Reassignment Surgery

Christian teacher fired for not caving to transgender student demands

American Family Association
December 12, 2018
According to Townhall.com, a teacher at West Point High School in Virginia was fired just last Thursday over his religious objections to using male pronouns when referring to a student who is biologically female but identifies as male.

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DOJ Appeals Military “Transgender” Ruling

By Liberty Counsel




Washington, D.C. - December 14, 2017 - (The Ponder News) -- The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed an appeal in a D.C. federal appeals court after the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said the military must begin accepting so-called “transgender” recruits on January 1, despite opposition from President Trump and the Pentagon.

The DOJ is currently reviewing the legal options to ensure that the president’s directive can be implemented. The Pentagon, under the direction of former President Obama, had originally set the January 1 deadline before President Trump declared a ban on all “transgender” military personnel earlier this year.

Two U.S. district courts, one in the District of Columbia and one in Maryland, blocked enforcement of President Trump’s proposed August 2017 ban on “transgender” persons in the armed services. According to the Defense Department, those courts required the branches to begin allowing such recruits to sign up for military service. A third order was issued Monday, by a U.S. District judge who also allowed the state to challenge the ban, stating that Washington has an interest in protecting its residents from discrimination.

In the August 2017 order, President Trump reversed policies put in place by the Obama administration in June 2016. Those Obama administration policies themselves reversed long-standing military rules against “transgender” people serving in the U.S. Armed Forces. Prior to June 2016, “transgender” people were not permitted to enlist in the military and members of the military who identified themselves as “transgender” were discharged. Obama's Department of Defense announced in June 2016 that openly “transgender” people would be permitted to enlist in the military as of January 1, 2018 and those already in the military could not be discharged.

“These court rulings are not in the best interest of the military and our national security,” said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. “The duty of military officers is to appropriately lead and prepare their personnel to serve and protect, and they cannot do that when there is confusion, dysfunction and distraction about a person’s gender preference. President Trump has tried to refocus the mission to emphasize military readiness and unit cohesion, and the courts have no business telling the Commander-in-Chief who is eligible to serve,” said Staver.

Liberty Counsel is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family since 1989, by providing pro bono assistance and representation on these and related topics.


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Federal Judge Usurps Role of Commander-In-Chief in Blocking Transgender Military Policy says Family Research Council

Source: Family Research Council

Washington, D.C. - November 1, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Family Research Council criticized the injunction by U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly that blocks enforcement of parts of President Trump’s transgender military policy.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, a Marine veteran, released the following statement:

“This is where judicial activism is leading us. The courts have moved beyond legislating on the invented rights of abortion and same-sex marriage to clearly usurping the constitutional authority of the executive branch. The president has the primary task of protecting Americans but we see the courts weakening his immigration policies designed to protect America from threats and now telling the commander-in-chief how to run the military,” concluded Perkins.



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Court Blocks Trans Military Ban in Yet Another Setback for the Discrimination Administration

Source: National Center for Transgender Equality

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Washington, D.C. - October 31, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- In yet another blow to the Trump administration’s campaign of discrimination against transgender Americans, a federal court today temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s dangerous and disrespectful Twitter-based ban on transgender military service members.

The ruling in Doe v. Trump concluded that the ban appeared to be based on little more than prejudice, saying that “there is absolutely no support for the claim that the ongoing service of transgender people would have any negative effective on the military at all,” and that “there is considerable evidence that it is the discharge and banning of such individuals that would have such effects.” The ruling also followed other recent court decisions in recognizing that government discrimination against transgender people is subject to heightened scrutiny by courts.

NCTE recently led a coalition of transgender organizations from around the country in filing an amicus brief in the case, arguing that the military ban is part of a wider pattern of discrimination against transgender people by the Trump administration.

NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling issued the following statement:

Again and again, our courts have been forced to step in and halt this administration’s unconstitutional and dangerous bigotry. As today’s ruling makes clear, this ban was never about military readiness—just like President Trump’s Muslim bans have never been about national security. This ban is about discrimination, plain and simple. We are grateful that the plaintiffs and thousands of other troops will be able to continue serving without the threat of discharge while this case proceeds. Unfortunately, this ruling is not the end of the story, and these troops and their units will still face uncertainty unless Congress acts to end this ban for good.
Lawmakers in both major parties have denounced the ban, and bipartisan bills have been introduced in the House and Senate to end it. Though backed by both the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senate leaders blocked a vote to add a measure that would have ended the ban to the pending national defense authorization bill.

In related News:

In defeat for Trump, judge blocks transgender military ban

Trump Administration Faces Lawsuit over Transgender Military Ban

Washington, D.C. - October 18, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- The Trump Administration has moved to have one of four different lawsuits dismissed so far. ABC has reported that the "DOJ argues that because the policy has not been fully implemented and none of the plaintiffs 'face a current or imminent threat of injury during the interim period while the policy is being studied,' it should be dismissed."

The National Center for Transgender Equality and seven other transgender advocacy organizations have filed an amicus brief in a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender service members.

Under the policy tweeted by President Trump in July and formalized in August, the Pentagon must develop a plan to begin purging transgender service members from the military by March 2018. The eight plaintiffs of Doe v. Trump allege that the ban violates their constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process.

NCTE argues in the brief that President Trump’s ban is the result of anti-transgender animus. Rather than being based on facts and legitimate government interests, the ban serves only to harm and disparage a vulnerable population for no reason other than who they are. The brief demonstrates that this attack on transgender people is part of a clear pattern of hostility and discrimination by the Trump administration, which has gone out of its way to dismantle civil rights protections for transgender people and promote anti-transgender bias and misinformation.

NCTE Executive Director Mara Keisling issued the following statement:

NCTE is proud to support the plaintiffs in this case. They represent thousands of qualified service members who are set to be purged from the military simply because of who they are. President Trump’s efforts to ban transgender people from serving in the military serves no legitimate purpose. Unfortunately, this is what we have come to expect from the Discrimination Administration. The President’s decision must not stand.

Related News:
Transgender military personnel sue Trump over service ban
Reuters
Five transgender members of the U.S. military including Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans sued President Donald Trump on Wednesday, challenging his ban on transgender people serving in the armed forces.
Read more...

ACLU STATEMENT ON DOJ RESCINDING TITLE VII PROTECTIONS FOR TRANSGENDER WORKERS

Source: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

Washington, D.C. - October 6, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Attorney General Jeff Sessions reversed a federal government policy yesterday that clarified that transgender people are protected from sex discrimination in the workplace under Title VII.

James Esseks, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBT & HIV Project, issued the following statement:

“Today marks another low point for a Department of Justice, which has been cruelly consistent in its hostility towards the LGBT community and in particular its inability to treat transgender people with basic dignity and respect.

“This Department of Justice under Jeff Sessions has time and time again made it clear that its explicit agenda is to attack and undermine the civil rights of our most vulnerable communities, rather than standing up for them as they should be doing.

“Discrimination against transgender people is sex discrimination, just as DOJ recognized years ago. We are confident that the courts will continue to agree and will reject the politically driven decision by Attorney General Sessions.”

WASHINGTON STATE PARENT SUES EMPLOYER FOR DENYING INSURANCE COVERAGE TO TRANSGENDER SON

Source: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

Seattle, WA - October 6, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- The ACLU of Washington filed a civil rights lawsuit today against PeaceHealth, a Catholic healthcare organization, on behalf of Cheryl Enstad and her teenage son, Pax, for denying coverage under its health benefits plan for medically necessary surgery to Pax simply because of who he is. The suit says that PeaceHealth’s policy of refusing to cover medical care required by transgender people is discrimination and violates federal and state law.

Pax Enstad is a boy who is transgender, meaning that while the sex assigned to him at birth was female, he has a male gender identity. He was diagnosed with gender dysphoria, a serious medical condition marked by persistent and clinically significant distress caused by incongruence between an individual’s gender identity and that individual’s sex designated at birth.

Gender dysphoria is a condition codified in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) and International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). To treat Pax’s gender dysphoria, Pax’s doctor prescribed chest reconstruction surgery.

PeaceHealth refused to cover the surgery, citing a policy of excluding all “transgender services.” The lawsuit asserts PeaceHealth’s blanket policy of refusing to pay for medically necessary healthcare for otherwise covered transgender individuals simply because of who they are discriminates on the basis of sex and gender identity, violates the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Washington Law Against Discrimination (WLAD), and is harmful to the health of transgender individuals.

“PeaceHealth’s blanket of exclusion of ‘transgender services’ is not based on standards of medical care,” said ACLU-WA Staff Attorney Lisa Nowlin. “This is discrimination, and it is plainly illegal. Under state and federal law, no company is allowed to single out and exclude one group of individuals from medical care that is prescribed for them by their doctors and that the company routinely provides for others.”

In the past, some public and private insurance companies excluded coverage for gender dysphoria (or “transition-related care”) based on the erroneous assumption that such treatments were cosmetic or experimental. Today, however, every major medical organization recognizes that such exclusions have no basis in medical science and that transition-related care is effective for the treatment of gender dysphoria.

Discrimination by healthcare providers routinely causes transgender people to delay or forgo preventative and necessary medical care, putting them at greater risk for illnesses and increasing their risk of suicide.

If left untreated, gender dysphoria can lead to debilitating anxiety, depression, self-harm, and even suicide. Pax suffered from debilitating depression and anxiety as a result of gender dysphoria that began at age 11, when he started to enter puberty. His grades at school fell; he was unable to participate in activities such as swimming and athletics; he wore several layers of clothing to hide his chest from view; and he eventually avoided going outside altogether. Pax’s gender dysphoria became so severe that he had to wear a binder to flatten his chest 24 hours a day.

As a result of PeaceHealth’s exclusion for “transgender services,” Cheryl Enstad and her husband were forced to take a second mortgage on their house and use some of Pax’s college savings funds to pay over $10,000 out-of-pocket for the chest-reconstruction surgery prescribed to Pax by his doctor.

“We were willing to do whatever it took to get Pax the medical care he needed — as any parent would,” Cheryl Enstad said. “When your child is singled out and rejected simply for being themselves, it’s heartbreaking, and it isn’t fair. We’re bringing this lawsuit to ensure no family has to go through what we did.”

The lawsuit asks the court to declare PeaceHealth’s blanket exclusion of “transgender services” discriminatory and illegal. It also seeks unspecified damages for the Plaintiffs.

The lawsuit, Enstad v. PeaceHealth, was filed in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Washington. PeaceHealth operates 70 sites in Washington, Oregon, and Alaska and has approximately 16,000 employees.

In addition to Nowlin, attorneys for the Enstads include Josh Block and Leslie Cooper with the ACLU LGBT & HIV Project and Denise Diskin and Beth Touschner of Teller & Associates.

Michigan funeral home asks appeals court to uphold respectful dress code for employees

by: Alliance Defending Freedom

Cincinnati, OH - October 6, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- A federal court ruled last year in favor of the funeral home, which the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued over the discharge of an employee who refused to comply with a requirement to dress in a manner sensitive to grieving family members and friends. The EEOC appealed the decision. ADF attorneys represent R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, which has locations in Detroit, Garden City, and Livonia.

The EEOC’s appeal seeks to force the business’s owner to allow a biologically male employee to wear a female uniform while interacting with the public. The district court ruled that the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act protects the freedom of the business to maintain a dress code consistent with its sincerely held faith convictions.

“The government should respect the freedoms of those who wish to respectfully serve the grieving and vulnerable,” said Wardlow. “The federal government shouldn’t use employment law to strong-arm private business owners into violating their religious beliefs. The district court was right to affirm this, and we will vigorously encourage the 6th Circuit to uphold that ruling.”

The funeral home hired the male employee as a funeral director and embalmer at its Garden City location in 2007. Funeral directors at the company regularly interact with the public, including grieving family members and friends. After informing the funeral home of an intention to begin dressing as a female at work, the employee was dismissed for refusing to comply with the same company dress code that all other employees are required to follow while on the job.

As the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan acknowledged in its opinion and order in the case, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, the company’s sole corporate officer and majority owner, Thomas Rost, is a Christian whose faith informs the way he operates his business and how he serves those who are deeply grieved by the loss of a loved one. Not only would Rost be violating his faith if he were to pay for and otherwise permit his employees to dress as members of the opposite sex while serving the grieving, the employee dress policy is intentionally sensitive to interaction with customers at an especially delicate time of their lives.

ADF attorneys argued that the funeral home did not violate Title VII, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in employment, and is, in fact, protected by RFRA, which says that the government cannot force someone like Rost to violate his faith unless it demonstrates that doing so is the “least restrictive means” of furthering a “compelling government interest.” The district court agreed that the EEOC’s actions violate RFRA.

Lawsuit opposes Trump's ban on transgender military service

Danbury:News-Times

Two LGBT-rights organizations filed a lawsuit in federal court Wednesday challenging President Donald Trump's tweets declaring he wants a ban on transgender people serving in the military.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington on behalf of five transgender service members with nearly 60 years of combined military service.

Transgender people have been allowed to serve openly in the military since June 2016. Trump, in a series of tweets on July 26, announced that he planned to end that policy.

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American College of Pediatrics reaches decision: Transgenderism of children is child abuse

BizPac Review

The American College of Pediatricians issued a statement this week condemning gender reclassification in children by stating that transgenderism in children amounts to child abuse.

“The American College of Pediatricians urges educators and legislators to reject all policies that condition children to accept as normal a life of chemical and surgical impersonation of the opposite sex. Facts – not ideology – determine reality.”

The policy statement, authored by Johns Hopkins Medical School Psychology Professor Paul McHugh, listed eight arguments on why gender reclassification is harmful.

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PRESIDENT TRUMP ANNOUNCES NO MORE TRANSGENDERS IN THE MILITARY

In a statement this morning, directly from his personal Twitter account, President Donald Trump shattered his predecessor's grand social experiment in the U.S. military. (Photo: President Trump speaks with General Mattis/Reuters/via Charisma News)

"After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military," he wrote. "Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail."

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Congressmen React to Military Transgender Ban

Washington, D.C. - July 27, 2017 (The Ponder News) -- Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) issued the following statement condemning President Trump’s cruel and discriminatory ban on transgender military service members from serving in the U.S. Armed Forces:

“Today’s attack by the Commander-in-Chief on our military’s active duty personnel is appalling,” Representative Nadler lamented. “The arguments against allowing transgender service members to serve openly in our military reflect the same arguments that have been used against every other group that has been prohibited from serving in our country’s history – including black and Latino men, women, gays, lesbians, and bisexuals. President Trump is attacking the very individuals he asks to risk their lives.”

Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) released the following statement on President Trump’s tweets on transgender Americans serving in the military.

“Tens of thousands of transgender Americans have bravely and selflessly served our military, risking their lives to defend the freedoms we enjoy every day. Like all Americans, they deserve the opportunity to wear the uniform regardless of their gender identity. President Trump’s bigoted decision will make America less safe and inhibit our military readiness. It is clear that President Trump is doubling down on his policies of hatred and it is the responsibility of all Americans – especially the Congress – to stand against this injustice.”

Congressman Jimmy Panetta (CA-20), a member of the House Armed Services Committee and a member of the House Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Equality Caucus, issued the following statement after President Donald Trump tweeted that transgender Americans will no longer be able to serve in the U.S. military:

“The President’s tweet attacking transgender service members is shameful and prejudiced. Those who are willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for our country should not face discrimination from anyone, let alone their Commander in Chief. Last year, the Department of Defense implemented a policy to allow transgender troops to serve openly in the military. Today’s guidance by President Trump, if carried out by the Department of Defense, to explicitly ban people who are already serving and wish to serve our country is a huge step back in the progress we have made in the name of diversity and inclusion. As member of the House Armed Services Committee and a veteran, I value every American who is willing and able to join the U.S. military. I urge the President to reverse his guidance, and to respect and support those who protect our country regardless of their gender identity.”

Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet issued the following statement in response to President Trump's tweets on banning transgender Americans from serving in the military:

"Our commander-in-chief should not ban Americans who are qualified to serve in our military and are willing to risk their lives for our country. This is an obvious attempt to distract from the Republicans' disastrous debate on health care."

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement in response to President Trump’s proposed ban on transgender Americans serving in the military.

“Servicemembers should be accepted on the basis of their ability to fight, train, and deploy without discrimination. Many transgender Americans have served honorably and capably – and countless others are serving now and would seek to serve in the future. President Trump should be thanking these servicemembers and veterans for their dedication and commitment to our nation instead of barring them from service. This rash and surprising Tweet contradicts the Department of Defense’s previous policy decision to allow transgender servicemembers to serve openly, and constitutes official discrimination.”