A U.S. federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s ban on transgender people serving in the military, citing the principle of equality and challenging a key part of President Trump’s agenda.
Judge Ana C. Reyes, in her ruling on Tuesday, suspended Trump’s executive order from January, which excluded transgender individuals from serving in the military. Reyes referenced the U.S. Declaration of Independence, which asserts that “all men are created equal,” and found that the ban conflicted with this principle.
The suspension, however, is on hold until March 21, giving the government time to seek an emergency stay from a higher court. This ruling marks a setback for Trump’s administration, which has pursued policies aimed at reducing protections for minority groups.
In his January 27 executive order, Trump stated that “expressing a false ‘gender identity’ divergent from an individual’s sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.” He also declared that the U.S. government would only recognize two genders—male and female—which he insists are “not changeable.”
An estimated 15,000 transgender individuals serve in the U.S. military, which has a total force of about two million.
In her decision, Judge Reyes strongly criticized the ban, calling it “soaked in animus and dripping with pretext.” She added that the policy stigmatizes transgender people as inherently unfit for military service and stated that its conclusions are “devoid of factual basis.”
Reyes noted that the Trump administration could have created a policy that balanced the need for a strong military and the rights of transgender Americans to equal protection. “The Military Ban is not that policy,” she said.
This ruling follows a February memo from U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, which halted transgender individuals from joining the military and suspended gender transition treatments for those already serving. The Pentagon has also outlined plans to remove transgender service members unless they receive a case-by-case waiver.
In 2016, under President Obama, the U.S. military lifted a ban on transgender troops. However, policies have shifted under both Trump and President Joe Biden, creating uncertainty on the issue.
Tuesday’s ruling was part of a lawsuit filed by a group of transgender individuals—both current service members and those who wish to join—to challenge Trump’s ban.
