IIn silence before a military base, long before the bustle of the morning exercises, Leanne Withrow slipped quietly into the women's shower room. It was still around 2 or 3 am – early enough to be sure that no one else was there.
Withrow was released as a transgender woman in 2016, the year before President Donald Trump's first trans prohibition. His goal, still, was to serve, help his colleagues soldier and go home. Do not become a symbol.
“I got into four, especially at the start of my transition, so as not to create problems,” said Time Time, nine years later. “Just to make sure I was not going to disturb anyone.”
But now, under a new mandate issued by Trump in January – ordering all employees of the federal government to use facilities that correspond to their gender attributed to birth – which has been at the center of a growing legal and political storm.
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In response to the mandate, the Ministry of Defense and other agencies have prevented transgender employees from using the toilets that correspond to their gender identity. The change of policy is the subject of a complaint filed at the Office of the National Guard of the Equality of Equality by Withrow, which now has the impression that it “works on eggshells”.
“I have concerns about the place where I stop to go to the bathroom”, Withrow, who enlisted in the army in 2010, but now works as a civilian employee of the Illinois National Guard. “Life can be very dangerous for trans people.”
One day, after the filing of the collective appeal complaint, the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump's transgender military ban could continue while several prosecution against the order continues to be pleaded before the lower courts, echoing a similar decision taken during Trump's previous mandate.
Supported by the decision, the Pentagon announced that it would begin to withdraw at least 1,000 openly transgender troops from the army. Others had 30 days to identify as a transgender, the Ministry of Defense warning that he will examine medical files to identify those who do not manifest themselves.
“There are people whose career and life will be permanently changed and irreparably,” says Withrow. “Even if this is later canceled in the legal battle, this person's opportunity to serve could disappear forever.”
Before his move from a staff sergeant for the National Guard, Withrow was one of the 4,420 transgender soldiers who represent 0.2% of all soldiers, According to the Ministry of Defense. While Withrow will be able to maintain his job as a civil employee, she fears that this will set the tone for the way other legal battles against the raft of anti-transformation policies can be played.
In January, the administration threatened to reduce federal funding to hospitals that provided sexual care for young people and at least one university that allowed A transgender athlete to participate in the female swimming team in 2022.
And later this year, the Supreme Court will make a decision on US c. SkrmettiA case contesting the prohibition of Tennessee on care affirming the sexes to minors. The judges are also ready to hear a case on the constitutionality of the prohibition of the state of therapy of conversion. A new report from the Ministry of Health and Social Services, which, according to defenders, recommends conversion therapy as a treatment for gender dysphoria, was published in May.
Withrow hopes that it will be able to continue its service to the families of the military without discrimination. “I want to help soldiers, families, veterans – then I want to go home at the end of the day. At one point, I would probably need to use the bathroom. ”
