What Role Should the Military Play in the Fight for Transgender Rights?

While President Trump's ban on transgender people from military service has been widely criticized even by fellow Republicans, it has reignited a debate within the LGBT community. Some have questioned whether the discourse on transgender rights should be broadened to include a critique of militarism. "Trump's transphobia is disgusting, like his defense budget," trans activist and scholar Dean Spade wrote yesterday. "The liberation we are working toward requires that we fight for vets and everyone else who gets exploited and abandoned for U.S. military imperialism, but not that we participate in rhetoric that celebrates the U.S. military as an employer or ties trans well-being to military service." We speak to Dean Spade, who is a professor at Seattle University School of Law, as well as Fiona Dawson, creator of the media project TransMilitary. She attended the protest outside the White House on Wednesday following Trump's announcement.