Heartfelt personal accounts from transgender people fighting for the right to serve in the military
"Prior to coming out as transgender I served the first several years of my career under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," hiding my sexual orientation out of the constant fear of expulsion. I then found myself in the same predicament as when I first joined, wanting nothing more than to serve my country and do my job, but at the cost of sacrificing a major part of who I am. . . . This time, however, I decided that I could no longer sacrifice my own well-being, my own authentic self."-Mak Vaden, Warrant Officer 1, U.S. Army National Guard, 2006-present
"I have traveled around the world. . . . I have been on five cutters with eleven years of sea time and commanded the Coast Guard cutter Campbell. I have negotiated treaties and fostered international law enforcement cooperation. I have stopped drug smugglers and seized illegal fishing vessels on the high seas. And, I also have gender dysphoria and identify as a trans woman."-Allison Caputo, Captain, US Coast Guard, 1995-present
On January 25, 2021, in one of his first acts as President, Joe Biden reversed the Trump Administration's widely condemned ban on transgender people in the military. In With Honor and Integrity, Mael Embser-Herbert and Bree Fram introduce us to the brave individuals who are on the front lines of this issue, assembling a powerful, accessible, and heartfelt collection of first-hand accounts from transgender military personnel in the United States.
Featuring twenty-six essays from current service members or veterans, these eye-opening accounts show us what it is like to serve in the military as a transgender person. From a religious affairs specialist in the Army National Guard, to a petty officer first class in the Navy, to a veteran of the Marine Corps who became "the real me" at age forty-nine, these accounts are personal, engaging, and refreshingly honest. Contributors share their experiences from before and during President Trump's ban-what barriers they face at work, why they do or don't choose to serve openly, and how their colleagues have treated them. Fram, a lieutenant colonel who is serving openly as a transgender woman in the US Space Force, and has advocated for open service policies, shares her experience in the aftermath of Trump's announcement of the ban on Twitter.
Ultimately, Embser-Herbert and Fram provide an inspiring look at the past, present, and future of transgender military service. At a time when LGBTQ rights are under siege, and the opportunity to serve continues to be challenged, With Honor and Integrity is a timely and necessary read.
Industry Reviews
"An exquisite book about serving in the U.S. military as a transgender person, with just enough historical and sociological context to make the volume's personal stories that much more meaningful ... A simple description can't do justice to the beauty, elegance, and courage displayed here. Readers will want to meet and spend time with these contributors. A worthwhile collection, highly recommended for all readers." * STARRED Library Journal * "With Honor and Integrity shares the pain of the closet and the triumph of transition for transgender patriots. Their stories underscore how policies of integrity and truth serve our nation best. Our nation's thanks goes to the brave souls who have blazed trails and shared their truths." -- C. Dixon Osburn, co-founder of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network "With Honor and Integrity is a must-read book by two of the nation's leading experts. This volume is a badly needed contribution to our understanding of military service by transgender personnel, but it's also much more than that, providing invaluable historical context and insightful policy analysis. Most of all, it centers transgender and gender-diverse Americans who show, in their own voices, that it's possible to live authentically while serving in uniform." -- Aaron Belkin, Director of the Palm Center "The world has waited too long to hear directly from the transgender patriots who have put their lives on the line to protect the rest of us. Now, at last, two leading voices in the field who have worn the uniform themselves, have brought together an extraordinary collection of first-hand accounts by active-duty service members and veterans, officers and enlisted personnel, those who have undergone transition and those who are doing so or may in the future. In the process, Mael Embser-Herbert and Bree Fram have made an invaluable contribution to our understanding of gender and military service, showing once again what it means to serve their country." -- Nathaniel Frank, author of Awakening: How Gays and Lesbians Brought Marriage Equality to America "The experiences of transgender servicemembers have been all too scant in analyses of the US military's anti-LGBT history. With Honor and Integrity ameliorates this absence, powerfully demonstrating the impact of gendered military policy on the trans and gender nonconforming people who serve under its watchful eye. In their own words, the trans servicemembers that Embser-Herbert and Fram profile show the difference that supportive-or unsupportive-supervisors, colleagues, and policies can make. This extremely timely intervention is a must-read for military scholars and policymakers alike." -- Catherine Connell, author of the forthcoming A Few Good Gays: The US Military's Incomplete Gender and Sexuality Revolution
