I was really pleased to see that the army is moving forward with accepting and understand that LGBT people exist in the ranks. Of course the UK armed forces already have some amazing trans role models already – these people are changing mindsets around what it means to be trans and also being very effective in their jobs.
However, I was not pleased with the press coverage and reporting – it’s seems to be poorly managed and ill advised. I hope this was not the reaction to pressure from the press over an ‘outing’ exclusive story, or pressure on Chloe from the army to wave the LGBT flag.
Firstly, General Sir James Everard, Commander of the Field Army, praised Guardsman Allen for her courage and said “I applaud Guardsman Chloe Allen for being a trendsetter and wish her every success.”
A trend setter? Since when has being trans been a trend? Very soon General James all your soldiers will transition and the entire front line will be women!?
The entire management of the press, including in the official photographs and videos she also looks like a “rabbit in headlights”. Her public “outing”, and please let us not pretend this is not what it is, has been managed in the most dreadful manner. Transitioning takes time, lots of time, and patience, and then more patience – I can’t help but feel there might be feeling of regret in a few years about how this was so public.
Finally, those headlines in the Sun and other papers of “sex-change” are simply not acceptable – and should have been picked up before any publication (see previous point). I know it’s about simple words and concepts for the ignorant and uneducated, but let me be clear these negative phases should be called out every time we see them or people will remain ignorant and uneducated.
But it’s not all bad… finally people get it, even the Sun’s dreadful headline “Sex-change soldier is Britain’s first woman to fight on front line….after being born a boy”…
Yes, that’s right she is a WOMAN!
