Current Version
| Region | United States |
| Issue | Serving openly in military |
| Status | Illegal |
| Start Date | May 19, 1941 |
| End Date | Feb 27, 1994 |
| Description | From May 19, 1941 until September 20, 2011, LGB people were banned from enlistment and service in the United States Army, US Coast Guard, US Marine Corps, and US Navy, and, beginning September 18, 1947, in the Air Force. From October 1, 1982, to September 19, 2011, when homosexuality was the sole basis for separation and no aggravating circumstances were present, the characterization of service was determined by the member’s overall record and could be Honorable or General (under honorable conditions), with entry-level cases receiving an uncharacterized separation. By May 17, 1963, in the United States Army; by 1982, in the United States Air Force; from March 31, 1986, on a U.S. Department of Defense-wide accession basis covering the United States Army, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and, by agreement, the United States Coast Guard; by August 12, 2005, in the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps; and by April 29, 2011, in the United States Coast Guard, transgender people were banned from enlistment and service until open service was authorized on June 30, 2016. By February 22, 1956, in the United States Coast Guard; by February 10, 1961, in the United States Army; by January 11, 1962, in an Air Force-specific accession standard; from March 31, 1986, on a Department of Defense-wide accession basis covering the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and, by agreement, the Coast Guard; and, from December 20, 2019, in the United States Space Force through inherited Air Force and DoD standards, applicants with intersex-related conditions identified in military rules as “hermaphroditism,” and later as “hermaphroditism, pseudohermaphroditism, or pure gonadal dysgenesis,” were disqualified from accession under military medical standards. |
| Sources | LGB people: https://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/heterohomobi/surgeon https://www.hrw.org/report/2003/01/06/uniform-discrimination/dont-ask-dont-tell-policy-us-military https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CPRT-84HPRT77556/pdf/CPRT-84HPRT77556.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1953-10-07/pdf/FR-1953-10-07.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013.pdf https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/591/852/369137/ https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/632/788/218452/ https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/gdc/gdcebookspublic/20/21/76/07/97/2021760797/2021760797.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1981-01-29/pdf/FR-1981-01-29.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/FOID/Reading%20Room/Administration_and_Management/25-F-4008_DoD_I_1332.14_Jan_1982.pdf https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/www/external/paf/projects/dopma-ropma/DODI-1304-26.pdf Transgender people: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/510/900/1980624/ https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/59148c4cadd7b049345300da https://time.com/7216460/fight-for-trans-inclusion-military-goes-back-decades/ https://palmcenterlegacy.org/wp-content/uploads/Military-Accession-DSD-Report-UPDATED-9-12-22-copy-1-2.pdf https://www.med.navy.mil/Portals/62/Documents/BUMED/Directives/MANMED/MANMED%20Chapter%2015%20Medical%20Examinations%20%28incorporates%20Changes%20126%20135-138%20140%20145%20150-152%20154-156%20160%20164-168%29.pdf https://www.med.navy.mil/Portals/62/Documents/NMFA/NMCPHC/root/Occupational%20and%20Environmental%20Medicine/Pages/OCCUPATIONAL%20AUDIOLOGY%20AND%20HEARING%20CONSERVATION%20DIVISION/REGULATIONS%20AND%20INSTRUCTIONS/16CIM-6000-1E.pdf https://www.gao.gov/assets/870/863884.pdf https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/821551/dod-announces-policy-change-on-transgender-service-members/ Intersex people: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1956-02-22/pdf/FR-1956-02-22.pdf https://archive.org/stream/USNManualOfTheMedicalDept196510/USN%20Manual%20of%20the%20Medical%20Dept%201965-10%20small_djvu.txt https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1962-01-11/pdf/FR-1962-01-11.pdf https://www.netc.navy.mil/Portals/46/NSTC/NROTC/docs/DoDI%206130.03.pdf https://www.spaceforce.mil/about-us/about-space-force/history/ |
| Federal Law | Yes |
Revision History (2)
| Old Value (Original) | New Value (Current) | |
|---|---|---|
| Description | LGB people were banned from service in the United States Army, United States Coast Guard, United States Marine Corps, and United States Navy, and, from September 18, 1947, in the United States Air Force. From October 1, 1982, to September 19, 2011, when homosexuality was the sole basis for separation and no aggravating circumstances were present, the characterization of service was determined by the member’s overall record and could be Honorable or General (under honorable conditions), with entry-level cases receiving an uncharacterized separation. | From May 19, 1941 until September 20, 2011, LGB people were banned from enlistment and service in the United States Army, US Coast Guard, US Marine Corps, and US Navy, and, beginning September 18, 1947, in the Air Force. From October 1, 1982, to September 19, 2011, when homosexuality was the sole basis for separation and no aggravating circumstances were present, the characterization of service was determined by the member’s overall record and could be Honorable or General (under honorable conditions), with entry-level cases receiving an uncharacterized separation. By May 17, 1963, in the United States Army; by 1982, in the United States Air Force; from March 31, 1986, on a U.S. Department of Defense-wide accession basis covering the United States Army, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and, by agreement, the United States Coast Guard; by August 12, 2005, in the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps; and by April 29, 2011, in the United States Coast Guard, transgender people were banned from enlistment and service until open service was authorized on June 30, 2016. By February 22, 1956, in the United States Coast Guard; by February 10, 1961, in the United States Army; by January 11, 1962, in an Air Force-specific accession standard; from March 31, 1986, on a Department of Defense-wide accession basis covering the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and, by agreement, the Coast Guard; and, from December 20, 2019, in the United States Space Force through inherited Air Force and DoD standards, applicants with intersex-related conditions identified in military rules as “hermaphroditism,” and later as “hermaphroditism, pseudohermaphroditism, or pure gonadal dysgenesis,” were disqualified from accession under military medical standards. |
Show Difference | ||
| Sources | https://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/heterohomobi/surgeon https://www.hrw.org/report/2003/01/06/uniform-discrimination/dont-ask-dont-tell-policy-us-military https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CPRT-84HPRT77556/pdf/CPRT-84HPRT77556.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1953-10-07/pdf/FR-1953-10-07.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013.pdf https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/591/852/369137/ https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/632/788/218452/ https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/gdc/gdcebookspublic/20/21/76/07/97/2021760797/2021760797.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1981-01-29/pdf/FR-1981-01-29.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/FOID/Reading%20Room/Administration_and_Management/25-F-4008_DoD_I_1332.14_Jan_1982.pdf | LGB people: https://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/heterohomobi/surgeon https://www.hrw.org/report/2003/01/06/uniform-discrimination/dont-ask-dont-tell-policy-us-military https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CPRT-84HPRT77556/pdf/CPRT-84HPRT77556.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1953-10-07/pdf/FR-1953-10-07.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013.pdf https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/591/852/369137/ https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/632/788/218452/ https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/gdc/gdcebookspublic/20/21/76/07/97/2021760797/2021760797.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1981-01-29/pdf/FR-1981-01-29.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/FOID/Reading%20Room/Administration_and_Management/25-F-4008_DoD_I_1332.14_Jan_1982.pdf https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/www/external/paf/projects/dopma-ropma/DODI-1304-26.pdf Transgender people: https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/510/900/1980624/ https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/59148c4cadd7b049345300da https://time.com/7216460/fight-for-trans-inclusion-military-goes-back-decades/ https://palmcenterlegacy.org/wp-content/uploads/Military-Accession-DSD-Report-UPDATED-9-12-22-copy-1-2.pdf https://www.med.navy.mil/Portals/62/Documents/BUMED/Directives/MANMED/MANMED%20Chapter%2015%20Medical%20Examinations%20%28incorporates%20Changes%20126%20135-138%20140%20145%20150-152%20154-156%20160%20164-168%29.pdf https://www.med.navy.mil/Portals/62/Documents/NMFA/NMCPHC/root/Occupational%20and%20Environmental%20Medicine/Pages/OCCUPATIONAL%20AUDIOLOGY%20AND%20HEARING%20CONSERVATION%20DIVISION/REGULATIONS%20AND%20INSTRUCTIONS/16CIM-6000-1E.pdf https://www.gao.gov/assets/870/863884.pdf https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/821551/dod-announces-policy-change-on-transgender-service-members/ Intersex people: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1956-02-22/pdf/FR-1956-02-22.pdf https://archive.org/stream/USNManualOfTheMedicalDept196510/USN%20Manual%20of%20the%20Medical%20Dept%201965-10%20small_djvu.txt https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1962-01-11/pdf/FR-1962-01-11.pdf https://www.netc.navy.mil/Portals/46/NSTC/NROTC/docs/DoDI%206130.03.pdf https://www.spaceforce.mil/about-us/about-space-force/history/ |
Show Difference | ||
| Original entry | |
|---|---|
| Status | Illegal |
| Federal Law | Yes |
| Start Date | May 19, 1941 |
| End Date | Feb 27, 1994 |
| Description | LGB people were banned from service in the United States Army, United States Coast Guard, United States Marine Corps, and United States Navy, and, from September 18, 1947, in the United States Air Force. From October 1, 1982, to September 19, 2011, when homosexuality was the sole basis for separation and no aggravating circumstances were present, the characterization of service was determined by the member’s overall record and could be Honorable or General (under honorable conditions), with entry-level cases receiving an uncharacterized separation. |
| Sources | https://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/heterohomobi/surgeon https://www.hrw.org/report/2003/01/06/uniform-discrimination/dont-ask-dont-tell-policy-us-military https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-f807ee96fa1d925e0cf65b2383c42807.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CPRT-84HPRT77556/pdf/CPRT-84HPRT77556.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1953-10-07/pdf/FR-1953-10-07.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013/pdf/GOVPUB-GP3-c1251d19aeb831e8fa208995e5a39013.pdf https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/591/852/369137/ https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/632/788/218452/ https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/gdc/gdcebookspublic/20/21/76/07/97/2021760797/2021760797.pdf https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1981-01-29/pdf/FR-1981-01-29.pdf https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/FOID/Reading%20Room/Administration_and_Management/25-F-4008_DoD_I_1332.14_Jan_1982.pdf |