Dana Delgardo, FNP

Dana delgardo: A Trans Man in the Military

One day, everything changed. In 2017, just a few months after the Obama rewrite of policy and following the shift in federal administration, I was asked to reprocess my ETP [military paperwork around gender change]. I could not make sense of it because my gender marker, the Defense Enrollment Eligibility Reporting System database (DEERs) listing, and my military ID, all reflected my gender as male. The only explanation I received was that the process now had to be done through Air Force headquarters, where prior the Medical Multidisciplinary Team (MMDT) headquarters in San Antonio, Texas validated one’s gender dysphoria and facilitated the in-service transition. I was first told I was grandfathered in and that all I needed was a letter to that effect. I tried multiple avenues at the Pentagon but was then informed by the person in charge, the same person who had asked me a year before to help them understand and implement the process, that I had to repeat everything through regular channels like everyone else. I didn’t know if this was a paperwork snafu or my fear of a return to military transphobia coming true.

My entire medical and psychological history was questioned. It felt like I was being harassed and discriminated against because of who I was yet again. It felt like reopening an old wound. The process reflected ignorance, stigma, bias, lack of training, and how transphobia persists. The Senior Master Sergeant’s first question was, “Did you have all the surgeries?” I was mortified.