Two federal appeals courts, one in Washington and one inVirginia, last week rejected the administration’s request to puton hold orders by lower court judges requiring the military to begin accepting transgender recruits on Jan. 1. “The Department of Defense has announced that it will be releasing an independent study of these issues in the coming weeks. Pentagon spokesperson Heather Babb said in a statement: “As mandated by court order, the Department of Defense is prepared to begin accessing transgender applicants for military service Jan. 1. The Pentagon on Dec. 8 issued guidelines to recruitment personnel in order to enlist transgender applicants by Jan. 1. In October, his administration said a federal law banning gender-based workplace discrimination does not protect transgender employees, reversing another Obama-era position.

Source: The Express Tribune December 30, 2017 07:41 UTC