Former Marine 'Concerned' By Trump Transgender Military Announcement
DENVER (CBS4) - It was just last year that transgender people were allowed to serve in the U.S. military. Now the president has announced that is coming to an end.
At the advocacy group One Colorado, there was anger.
"(It's a) direct attack against transgender Americans," said Daniel Ramos, the executive director of the group that promotes gay and transgender rights.
The president tweeted that "The Government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in the U.S. Military."
He cited disruption and medical costs, although several groups have disputed that.
Sable Schultz of the GLBT Community Center of Colorado in Denver is a transgender woman and feels the president's announcement will have a strong negative impact on her community.
"I am concerned for a lot of our service members, folks who want to serve. I am concerned on the emotional impact this is going to have on people who have served honorably in our military," she said.
Emma Shinn served proudly 20 years, retiring as a captain in the Marines in 2014. She is transgender.
"It was a terrible price to pay for my service but I'm glad that I did it," she said of having to keep her orientation a secret.
She added, it makes zero difference especially when in combat zone where your real focus is protecting the person on your left and your right."
Among the places she has served was in battle ridden Fallujah, Iraq. She has a collection of medals framed to show her performance.
The president has received praise from the Liberty Counsel and Republican Rep. Vicky Hartzler of Missouri who thanked Donald Trump, "for making America great again."
CBS4's Rick Sallinger is a Peabody award winning reporter who has been with the station more than two decades doing hard news and investigative reporting. Follow him on Twitter @ricksallinger.
