A ban is now in effect.
The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to enforce a ban on openly transgender individuals serving in the military. On Tuesday, in the case United States v. Shilling, the Supreme Court granted a stay request from the administration, overturning a lower court’s injunction that had blocked the ban. This decision means that the ban can be enforced while appeals are ongoing. The court’s order indicated that the stay would remain in effect unless the Supreme Court decides to review the case or if a petition for certiorari is filed and subsequently denied.
The ruling was opposed by the court’s three liberal justices—Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson—who would have denied the stay. In response to the decision, LGBT advocacy organizations such as Lambda Legal and the Human Rights Campaign issued a joint statement criticizing the order. They argued that the ban is discriminatory and harms military readiness, asserting that transgender individuals can meet the same standards as others in the military. They expressed confidence that the ban will ultimately be overturned.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt praised the Supreme Court’s decision, calling it a significant victory for the Trump administration. She emphasized that the ban aligns with a focus on military readiness and rejects what she described as “woke gender ideology.” President Trump had previously signed an executive order in 2017 aimed at restricting transgender military service, citing concerns that being transgender conflicts with the values of military service.
As part of this policy, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued further directives stating that the Defense Department recognizes only two genders and will not fund gender-affirming surgeries or hormone treatments for service members. The policy also asserts that individuals with gender dysphoria are not fit for military service, claiming that such service is incompatible with the interests of national security.
The legal battle over the ban began after U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle issued an injunction blocking the enforcement of the ban in March. Subsequently, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the injunction, denying the administration’s request to lift it while the case continued in lower courts.
