Latest news with #BreeFram
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US military's highest ranking transgender officer says seperation process is broken
The highest-ranking transgender officer in the Department of Defense said that the military's transgender separation policy is going to leave gaps in units as skilled service members are removed from the armed forces. U.S. Space Force Col. Bree Fram said that as of June 7, she is on administrative leave from the service, pending separation, as a result of the Pentagon's ban on transgender troops. She told Task & Purpose Monday that she is at the end of her more than two-decade career in the armed forces. She spoke to Task & Purpose in her personal capacity, not in reflection of Pentagon policy Fram, an aeronautical engineer who previously served in the Air Force before moving to Space Force in 2021, was serving as director of requirements and integration for Space Force. In posts on social media, she said that her last official act was to pin medals on three people who served under her. She cried as they saluted her. The Department of Defense officials say they believe there are approximately 4,200 service members with gender dysphoria in the ranks, and that as of May 15, 1,000 had come forward to begin a so-called 'voluntary' separation process. Others who may later be identified and 'involuntarily' separated could receive smaller compensation packages, officials say. 'People are on pins and needles. We're asking each other 'what do you know? What do we all know?' It's been really difficult,' she told Task & Purpose on Monday. 'I want to stress that although this is labeled voluntarily, neither the 'voluntary' or 'involuntary' process is a choice, or what anyone wanted or would have done.' Fram joined the military after Sept. 11, 2001, and came out as transgender in 2016, the same day that the Department of Defense lifted its ban on transgender service. She spent nearly 20 years in the Air Force, then moved to the Space Force in 2021. Transgender service members, Fram said, 'have been operating in a vacuum,' and are looking for more information from military leadership. The military's involuntary separation process for transgender troops, which started on June 7, remains vague on details. Members in the reserves have until July 7 to choose to go through the voluntary separation process. The Air Force and Navy have said that troops with certain years of service are eligible for early retirement in this process. A technical but life-altering issue for troops, said Fram, is the 'separation code' under which they will leave the service. Most troops leaving the military are granted an 'honorable discharge,' a separation code that indicates they left in good standing with no serious discipline issues or professional failures. Though the Pentagon has, at times, said that transgender troops with clean records would receive honorable discharges, but Fram said that's no longer clear. A May 15 memo from the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness said transgender enlisted personnel would be separated under the JFF separation code, meaning it was done by secretarial authority. Officers would be given a JDK code, which indicates on their service record that 'their continued service is not clearly consistent with the interests of national security' — a black mark for troops in the job market, as it could prevent them from getting or maintaining security clearances that are required for certain jobs. Rachel VanLandingham, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and JAG, told Task & Purpose that the JDK separation code is usually reserved for matters such as mishandling classified information. Fram said that the main concern for them has been uncertainty over what is next. 'Anyone navigating a transition out of the military is put in a challenging position, but they have this extra burden of being labeled as dishonorable or liars,' she said. Fram also noted that the separations will cause disruptions for ongoing operations as troops who are qualified for specific roles are 'suddenly gone.' Fram's work focused on researching what capabilities and 'fight critical' systems the Space Force will need to field in the next decade. It's specialized work drawing on her years of experience, which others in Space Force don't have, she said. Fram noted that units that have open transgender personnel have tried to do some planning to fill gaps left by separation, but replacing thousands of people across the military 'is not something that happens tomorrow.' 'The impact of this is not just on today. It stretches far into the future,' she said. At her final awards ceremony, Fram said, her colleagues were stunned to learned she was leaving the service and all shook her hand as the event broke up. 'We served with our friends, our colleagues, with people who respected us, and now that's just missing,' she said. 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Daily Mail
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Trans military colonel issues defiant message after being booted from post as Donald Trump ban takes effect
A transgender military official has spoken out after being placed on administrative leave as part of the Trump administration's ban on trans troops. Colonel Bree Fram, who came out as transgender in 2016 when the initial ban on trans troops was lifted, was an astronautical engineer in the U.S. Space Force and was the Pentagon 's division chief for requirements integration. She posted to Instagram on Friday saying 'I have been officially placed on administrative leave, effective tomorrow, pending separation' after the Supreme Court ruled the ban could go ahead. Fram - whose profile picture on the social media app is an LGBT rainbow version of the Space Force logo - defiantly spoke of sobbing as she pinned medals on three of 'my folks' in her last official act in service. She wrote: 'The last salute broke my heart in two and the tears flowed freely even as I have so much to be thankful for and so many amazing memories.' Fram detailed the day she came out in 2016, telling a story of how her colleagues responded to the announcement by shaking her hand and, one by one, saying: 'It's an honor to serve with you.' She also spoke about a similar experience last week, when she announced at a joint staff meeting that she was leaving and that she no longer met 'the current standard for military excellence and readiness'. She said: 'A room full of senior leaders, admirals and generals, walked over to me and the scene from 2016 repeated. They offered those same words, now tinged with the sadness of past tense: "It's been an honor to serve with you".' She added that she walked away with tears in her eyes because Fram felt that it had been her honor all along. She wrote: 'It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve this nation and defend the freedoms and opportunities we have as Americans. My wildest dreams came true wearing this uniform.' In the past six months, Fram had been posting photos of her fellow transgender troops on Instagram listing their accomplishment with the tagline: 'Happens to Be Trans.' Fram told Stars And Stripes that her work recently had been focused on 'defining the future capabilities that we're going to need to win wars far into the future'. She added that her Instagram post was an attempt to speak on behalf of her fellow transgender soldiers. She said: 'It is almost a duty and an obligation to speak on their behalf because it is my privilege to do so and to hopefully represent transgender service members well that do not have the privilege that comes along with the rank and the experience that I do. 'If I don't speak for them and they are unable to speak for themselves, who will speak for them?' In early May, the Supreme Court ruled that President Trump 's ban on troops with gender dysphoria can stand. The Supreme Court's ruling lifts a lower court's decision to pause Trump's policy, which the administration called 'dramatic and facially unfair '. The order allows the Department Of Defense to continue removing trans service members from the military and denying enlistment while lawsuits continue in the lower courts.. On January 20, President Trump signed an executive order ordering Pete Hegseth to enact a ban on 'individuals with gender dysphoria' serving in the U.S. military. District Judge Benjamin Settle in Washington state ruled that the ban violated the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection and barred the government from enforcing Trump's policy. The Trump administration appealed to the U.S. Court Of Appeals for the 9th Circuit but it was rejected, prompting them to appeal to the Supreme Court. Trump's lawyers argued that the ruling was 'contrary to military readiness and the Nation's interests'. The liberal justices - Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson - would have decided against Trump, they indicated in the filing, but the Supreme Court ruling was not signed. The ruling was an emergency appeal prompting an unusually swift ruling from the Supreme Court justices, although they can rule on the merits of the case at a later date. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt celebrated the news in a statement. She wrote: 'Another MASSIVE victory in the Supreme Court! President Trump and Secretary Pete Hegseth are restoring a military that is focused on readiness and lethality - not DEI or woke gender ideology.' The ban enacted by the Department Of Defense on February 26 detailed that 'the medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms with, gender dysphoria are incompatible with the high mental and physical standards necessary for military service'. The level challenge to the order was filed by Commander Emily Shilling, together with six other current transgender service members and one transgender person who wants to join the military. Schilling appeared at the LGBT Community Center dinner on April 10 to be honored for the legal fight against the president and his administration. Schilling said: 'I swore an oath to support and defend the constitution. That oath requires obedience to lawful orders. But when an order undermines the very principles I swore to uphold, I have the responsibility to challenge it.' Shortly after he was inaugurated in 2021, Joe Biden signed an executive order overturning Trump's initial ban on service of transgender individuals in the military. After Trump was inaugurated he ordered the ban to be reinstated. Trump and Hegseth view the extra care required for transgender service members to be a distraction to military readiness. In February, Hegseth ordered a pause on gender-transitioning medical procedures for active duty service members. His memo said: 'Effective immediately, all new accessions for individuals with a history of gender dysphoria are paused, and all unscheduled, scheduled, or planned medical procedures associated with affirming or facilitating a gender transition for Service members are paused.'
Daily Mail
09-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Trans military colonel issues defiant message after being booted from post as Trump ban takes effect
One of the military's highest ranking transgender officials is speaking out after being placed on administrative leave as part of the Trump administration's ban on trans troops. Colonel Bree Fram, who came out as transgender in 2016 when the initial ban on trans troops was lifted, was an astronautical engineer in the US Space Force and was the Pentagon 's division chief for requirements integration. She posted to Instagram Friday saying 'I have been officially placed on administrative leave, effective tomorrow, pending separation' after the Supreme Court ruled the ban could go ahead. Fram - whose profile picture on the social media app is an LGBT rainbow version of the Space Force logo - defiantly spoke of sobbing as she pinned medals on three of 'my folks' in her last official act in service. 'The last salute broke my heart in two and the tears flowed freely even as I have so much to be thankful for and so many amazing memories.' Fram detailed the day she came out in 2016, telling a story of how her teammates responded to the announcement by shaking her hand and, one by one, saying: 'It's an honor to serve with you.' She also spoke about a similar experience last week, when she announced at a joint staff meeting that she was leaving and that she no longer met 'the current standard for military excellence and readiness.' 'A room full of senior leaders, admirals and generals, walked over to me and the scene from 2016 repeated. They offered those same words, now tinged with the sadness of past tense: 'It's been an honor to serve with you',' she said. She added that she walked away with tears in her eyes because Fram felt that it had been her honor all along. 'It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve this nation and defend the freedoms and opportunities we have as Americans. My wildest dreams came true wearing this uniform.' In the past six months, Fram had been posting photos of her fellow transgender troops on Instagram listing their accomplishment with the tagline: 'Happens to Be Trans.' Fram told Stars and Stripes that, most recently, her work had been focused on 'defining the future capabilities that we're going to need to win wars far into the future.' She added that her Instagram post was an attempt to speak on behalf of her fellow transgender soldiers. 'It is almost a duty and an obligation to speak on their behalf because it is my privilege to do so and to hopefully represent transgender service members well that do not have the privilege that comes along with the rank and the experience that I do,' she said. 'If I don't speak for them and they are unable to speak for themselves, who will speak for them?' In early May, the Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump 's ban on troops with gender dysphoria can stand. The Supreme Court's ruling lifts a lower court's decision to pause Trump's policy, which the administration called 'dramatic and facially unfair.' The order allows the Department of Defense to continue removing transgender service members from the military and denying enlistment while lawsuits continue in the lower courts.. On January 20, President Trump signed an executive order ordering Hegseth to enact a ban on 'individuals with gender dysphoria' serving in the U.S. military. District Judge Benjamin Settle in Washington state ruled that the ban violated the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection and barred the government from enforcing Trump's policy. The Trump administration appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit but it was rejected, prompting them to appeal to the Supreme Court. Trump's lawyers argued that the ruling was 'contrary to military readiness and the Nation's interests.' The liberal justices - Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson - would have decided against Trump, they indicated in the filing, but the Supreme Court ruling was not signed. The ruling was an emergency appeal prompting an unusually swift ruling from the Supreme Court justices, although they can rule on the merits of the case at a later date. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt celebrated the news in a statement. 'Another MASSIVE victory in the Supreme Court!' she wrote. 'President Trump and Secretary Pete Hegseth are restoring a military that is focused on readiness and lethality – not DEI or woke gender ideology.' The ban enacted by the Department of Defense on February 26 detailed that 'the medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms with, gender dysphoria are incompatible with the high mental and physical standards necessary for military service.' The level challenge to the order was filed by Commander Emily Shilling, together with six other current transgender service members and one transgender person who wants to join the military. Schilling appeared at the LGBT Community Center dinner on April 10 to be honored for the legal fight against the president and his administration. 'I swore an oath to support and defend the onstitution,' Schilling said. 'That oath requires obedience to lawful orders. But when an order undermines the very principles I swore to uphold, I have the responsibility to challenge it.' Shortly after he was inaugurated in 2021, President Joe Biden signed an executive order overturning Trump's initial ban on service of transgender individuals in the military. After Trump was inaugurated he ordered the ban to be reinstated. Trump and Hegseth view the extra care required for transgender service members to be a distraction to military readiness. In February, Hegseth ordered a pause on gender-transitioning medical procedures for active duty service members. 'Effective immediately, all new accessions for individuals with a history of gender dysphoria are paused, and all unscheduled, scheduled, or planned medical procedures associated with affirming or facilitating a gender transition for Service members are paused,' his memo said.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Military Colonel: Hegseth comments on transgender soldiers are ‘factually untrue'
The Pentagon announced plans to immediately remove transgender service members, after the Supreme Court upheld Trump's ban on trans people serving in the military. Transgender Colonel Bree Fram joins The Weekend to discuss.
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Service members face uncertainty after Supreme Court allows Trump to enforce transgender military ban
WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration can now enforce its transgender military ban. It comes after months of litigation, but the fight isn't over yet. Active duty members and veterans told DC News Now the news is devastating, but they'll continue doing their jobs until they're told otherwise. The Trump administration has said that having transgender troops is harmful to military readiness. Trump asks Supreme Court to allow ban on transgender members of the military to take effect, for now In late February, the Department of Defense said transgender service members were to be removed within 60 days, in line with President Trump's executive order. Multiple court cases delayed that until Tuesday. 'When the Supreme Court ruled, I and thousands of other transgender service members were doing our duty,' said Space Force Col. Bree Fram. 'I was helping define the future of our military's capability in space. And thousands of others were doing exactly what this government has asked of them.' Fram spoke with DC News Now in her personal capacity and stated that her views do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Defense or the U.S. government. 'We feel a bit unwanted, despite years of service and dedication to this nation, where we have succeeded based on our merits,' Fram said. Lindsay Church, a transgender Navy veteran and executive director of Minority Veterans of America, said it's causing a lot of distress for trans service members. 'People don't know where they're going to live, whether or not they're going to have a job, whether or not they're going to have health care,' Church said. Church said lower court rulings have shown the ban isn't about merit. 'If you can't find cases or reasons why transgender service members should be kicked out, you have to go into their medical records, it goes to prove a point that transgender service members are not a detraction or a distraction from our military readiness,' Church said. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: 'They are so incredibly resilient and capable': Transgender col. pushes back on Pentagon order to remove transgender troops Fram said the policy will cause real harm while court cases play out. 'It's a struggle to figure out — how do we move forward? But we are going to and until we can't, we're going to put on the uniform and accomplish the mission,' Fram said. 'I have served my nation in uniform for over 22 years. I do not plan for that service to end, whether in uniform or not.' The Department of Defense said Tuesday that officials are currently determining the next steps. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted on X Tuesday, 'No More Trans @ DoD.' During a speech before the ruling, he said, 'We are leaving wokeness and weakness behind. No more pronouns, no more climate change obsession, no more emergency vaccine mandates, no more dudes in dresses. We're done with that s—.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | DC, Virginia, Maryland News, Weather, Traffic, Sports Live.
