Tue Mar 18 23:42:55 UTC 2025: **Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Ban on Transgender Military Service**
Washington, D.C. – A federal judge has temporarily blocked a Trump administration executive order barring transgender individuals from serving in the U.S. military. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes ruled on March 18, 2025, that the order, issued by former President Donald Trump in January, likely violates the Constitution’s prohibition against sex discrimination.
The order, one of several targeting transgender rights, mandated that the military cease allowing transgender individuals to enlist and would begin expelling current transgender service members. The military initially announced it would comply with the order in February.
The lawsuit challenging the ban was filed by 20 current and prospective service members. They argued that the order contradicts a 2020 Supreme Court ruling establishing that employment discrimination against transgender people constitutes illegal sex discrimination.
While the government argued that the military has the right to exclude individuals with conditions deemed unsuitable for service, Judge Reyes repeatedly pressed them for evidence to support this claim, expressing concern over the order’s language. The number of transgender service members is estimated to be in the low thousands out of a total active-duty force of approximately 1.3 million.
This temporary injunction will remain in effect while the lawsuit proceeds.
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