President-elect Joe Biden plans to reverse Donald Trump's ban on most transgender individuals from serving in the US military.
ABC News obtained policy documents from the Democratic Party which reveal they are planning to undo a number of anti-LGBTQ+ policies when Biden takes office in January.
Amongst them is a memorandum Trump signed in 2018 memorandum disqualifying transgender individuals with a history of 'gender dysphoria' from military service except under certain limited circumstances.
Before that, while Biden was Vice President, Former Democratic President Barack Obama allowed transgender people to serve openly and receive medical care to transition genders.
The policy documents reveal the Biden campaign said Trump and Vice President Mike Pence "have given hate against LGBTQ+ individuals safe harbour and rolled back critical protections", and they plan to overturn the near-total ban.
Other policies include:
- Appointing LGBTQ+ people into federal government jobs
- Reversing Trump administration policies which allowed discrimination against LGBTQ people by social service agencies, health care providers, adoption and foster care agencies under religious exemptions
- Direct public schools to allow transgender students to access bathrooms, locker rooms and sports teams in accordance with their gender identity
- Allocating budget towards stopping violence against transgender people
- Support legislative efforts to ban conversion therapy for LGBTQ youth
- Adding potential question answers about sexual orientation and gender identity to national surveys
Nicolas Talbott, a transgender man seeking to overturn the military ban, called it "a huge relief".
"I look forward to being allowed to re-enrol in ROTC so I can continue to train, keep up my fitness to serve, and become the best Army officer I can possibly be," Talbott told ABC News.
