On Monday 20th October, Joshua Polchar, strategic analyst, presented at the conference ‘Perspectives on Transgender Military Service’, hosted by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Palm Center. The conference brought together people from around the world to discuss inclusion of transgender personnel in armed forces, and the exclusionary policies of the United States.
HCSS notes the growing evidence in support of inclusion for transgender service members. Diversity is a fact of life for militaries, and making the most of it is critically important for defense organizations to survive and thrive in the twenty-first century security environment. It is crucial to recruit and retain the right person for the job. Morale is higher when people feel recognized and respected. Cohesion is enhanced when colleagues can communicate authentically. And with the right management, diverse teams outperform homogeneous ones on a range of tasks.
On 27th June 2014 HCSS released a report on how armed forces worldwide can become more inclusive for LGBT service members. The report identifies best practices around the world with the LGBT Military Index, the world’s first ranking of LGBT inclusion in armed forces.
The HCSS report shows the way forward with a strategy for LGBT military inclusion: the differences of individual service members should be valued and integrated into the way the armed forces function.
Read also the following publications on this subject:
• MSNBC
• Trouw
• HRC
Experts
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