Bree Fram- with Dani Butler, Miranda Jones, Sabrina Bruce and Jamie Hash

Heartfelt personal accounts from transgender people fighting for the right to serve in the military.

Featuring twenty-six essays from current service members or veterans, these eye-opening accounts show us what it is like to serve in the military as a transgender person. From a religious affairs specialist in the Army National Guard, to a petty officer first class in the Navy, to a veteran of the Marine Corps who became "the real me" at age forty-nine, these accounts are personal, engaging, and refreshingly honest. Contributors share their experiences from before and during President Trump's ban--what barriers they face at work, why they do or don't choose to serve openly, and how their colleagues have treated them. Fram, a lieutenant colonel who is serving openly as a transgender woman in the US Space Force, and has advocated for open service policies, shares her experience in the aftermath of Trump's announcement of the ban on Twitter.

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Bree Fram (she/her) is an active duty lieutenant colonel and astronautical engineer in the United States Space Force. She is also the President of SPARTA, a non-profit that advocates and educates about transgender military service and is dedicated to the support and professional development of over 1700 transgender service members.Bree came out publicly as transgender on the day the transgender ban in the military was dropped in 2016 and transitioned while in a command position. She served through the re-imposition of a transgender military ban from 2019-2021. She is currently one of the highest ranking out transgender officers in the United States military.

Fram is joined in conversation with Dani Butler, Miranda Jones, Sabrina Bruce and Jamie Hash.

Dani Butler was born an Army brat in Nurnberg, Germany. Graduated Caledonia-Mumford High School, New York in 1976 and joined the Marines. In 1979 she married her wife, also a Marine at the time. She did 22 years in the Marines retiring in 1998 with assignments including locations of California, Illinois, Mississippi, Virginia, Japan, Korea, and Cambodia. She has worked as a contractor for the Army since her retirement continuing today. Serves with her employers LGBTQ Employee Resource Group, speaks with Equality Virginia Speakers Bureau, and is one of the founders of a local transgender support group. Although identified as male at birth she now lives her authentic life happily as a woman enjoying life with her family.

Miranda Jones is married, a retired US Marine, a government civil servant, and transgender. She has been married for 29 years and has 4 children, most of whom are grown and out of the house now, all of whom are accepting of her gender identity to varying degrees. She is a spouse, parent, hunter, car mechanic, and combat veteran who just happens to be transgender too. In her current professional career, she is a professor of defense systems acquisition, and teaches program management. Miranda is a member of trans-military groups where she can offer support or guidance to other members of the military who may not have the confidence they need to move forward or to share. She is also also active with several Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia-area Trans Groups, such as the Rappahannock Regional Transgender Support group, which is a monthly gathering in the Fredericksburg, VA area and is open to all genders, ages, and family members. Miranda made her formal “work transition” on April 11th, 2022, finally allowing herself to be seen authentically in her professional life; not just socially.

Sabrina Bruce is an active duty member of the United States Space Force. She grew up in South Carolina and first joined the military in 2013. Her transition began in 2017, right before the transgender military ban was implemented. Despite this shadow, Sabrina flourished in both her personal and professional life. She volunteers with SPARTA, a transgender military advocacy group, and has provided mentorship for dozens of transgender military members. In 2021, Sabrina was selected to attend the Inter-European Non-Commissioned Officer Academy where she represented the United States alongside 20 NATO countries.