At the State of the Union address this Tuesday evening, New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas is bringing Tavion Dignard, a transgender US Navy veteran, as his guest, according to a Congressional press release from Pappas’s office.
Dignard, a transgender man, began serving in the Navy in 1998 and was honorably discharged in 2002. He is currently an undergraduate at the University of New Hampshire. President Trump’s transgender military service ban would prevent qualified people such as Dignard from serving our country.
“President Trump’s transgender service ban weakens and politicizes our military despite the ridiculous claims of improving military cohesion,” said Pappas.
“I’m so glad Tavion will be with me to tell his story, share his truth, and stand as a warmly welcomed guest of the United States House of Representatives. As lawmakers, it’s our job to hold the Trump Administration accountable for its discriminatory policies. Denying transgender Americans their right to serve this country is a disgrace. They deserve equal treatment by their government and the law,” Pappas said.
“I thank Congressman Pappas for this unique opportunity to share my story and be a part of this incredible experience,” said Dignard.
“I came out as a transgender man because I wanted to live my authentic truth and because I wanted to be the person I needed when I was younger,” Dignard said. “Being denied that opportunity put up absurd discriminatory barriers and created serious trauma in my life. No transgender service member should have to suffer through uncertainty about the acceptability of their identity or feel pushed out of their job for expressing who they are.”
As New Hampshire’s first openly LGBTQ member of Congress and a co-chair of the Equality Caucus, Chris has spoken out against the ban and believes that transgender military service members and veterans are always welcome in the People’s House. A UCLA study from 2014 said there are more than 15,000 transgender Americans in active duty and 153,000 transgender veterans, according to the Congressional press release.
