The US Army official X account stated on Friday that they “will no longer allow transgender individuals to join the military”. 

The statement also noted that the Army will halt all gender transition services for members who wish to transition. 

The US Army described current ‘transgender’ members as individuals with gender dysphoria. 

In 2016, under the Obama administration, the US Army allowed transgender individuals to identify with their ‘self-identified’ gender, while offering gender transition services to all.

Then in 2019, President Trump reversed course on this policy, while offering certain exceptions to those already serving in the army.

The Biden administration that followed reversed the policy once more, lifting the prohibition on transgender individuals serving in the military, a change that held until the current Trump administration reinstated a comprehensive ban.

Sources such as the Rand Corporation (2016) and Williams Institute (2014) estimate between 2,150 to 15,500 potential transgender members of the US military, which has approximately 1.32 million active duty personnel and 738,000 reserves. 

In Canada’s short staffed military, around 200 members may be transgender, at least as estimated in 2017 by Legion Magazine. 

Amid the U.S. changes, Canada continues to promote DEI and sexual identity politics in its recruitment and military operations.

In 2022, the military relaxed dress codes, allowing for gender-neutral uniforms with allowing for colored hair, facial tattoos, long hair, however some of these items were reversed last year due to public backlash over a lack of military discipline. 

Canada’s Department of National Defense also introduced in March 2023 a ‘Anti-Racism Toolkit,’ which included 122 terms related to gender identity, race, and DEI values. 

2024 also exposed the use of gender advisors in Canada’s foreign military operations, such as in Ukraine, in order to further Canada’s foreign policy objective of promoting gender equality in military contexts.