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Found this while browsing the BBC News site at work today.
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-36429860
it is an interesting read about people who are transgender and serving in the US military and secretly transitioning until the military changes its policy on Gender Identity.
Comments
Estimates
It is always interesting when you read a media story that says "an estimated." Who made that estimation, and based on what?
The current rule of thumb for the percentage of general population that is transgender is .3% with some suggesting .5%. There are a total of 1.4 million people serving in US armed forces.
If the estimated 12,800 transgender military personnel is correct that would suggest a much higher percentage than the general population.
Given the stigma I would have thought just the opposite. My estimate would have been that people in the military would be much less likely to be transgender, maybe by as much as two-thirds less. Most estimates of gays in the military suggest about 5% while about 10% of the general population is thought to be gay.
My logic would "estimate" that there's more like 1,500 to 3,000 transgender in the military.
Since even this (BC) august community has trouble defining the term "transgender" it would seem most "estimates" are ballpark figures if you consider Yellowstone a ball-park.
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
Estmates
I would submit that there transgender numbers might be a bit higher, at least for my generation of service members. The reason being that some of us joined, in part, to make a "man" of ourselves. I don't know how successful others were in this endeavor. But, for myself, it was very frustrating and in the end not successful in eradicating the feminine within.
Linda Jeffries
Too soon old, too late smart.
Valid Point
Part of the whole guilt trip.
Jill
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
There are estimates and estimates
These estimates are based on solid research. Take a look at the various papers produced by the Palm Center (palmcenter.org). They also indicate exactly who did the research, when and identify the source material.
Persephone
Non sum qualis eram
Below the Fold
I was having a hard time understanding your comment so I went back to the article. When I first read it I thought it stopped at the first picture. The rest of the article made some of the same points that I did. Thanks.
Angela Rasch (Jill M I)
the military option
is also one of the most common means of escaping from the small town bigotry. I knew I was TG when I was in high school... I didn't know what options were available (not many, in the mid-80's) but I did know, I couldn't stay in conservative, close minded, western Pennsylvania. College was certainly a possibility, but paying for it was going to be a challenge... and I easily had the scores to get a good program guaranteed to me by the military, that would keep me from being fodder and provide options for when i got out.
The attitude of the military and the country at large has come a long way in those twenty five years. There's still a lot of uphill road ahead of us... but there's no doubt that we have experienced a lot of change.