Transgender student loses university scholarship over trans military ban
Transgender student Map Pesqueira, who lost his scholarship due to Trump’s Trans Military Ban (GoFundMe)
A transgender student who is studying at the University of Texas in Austin (UT) has lost his scholarship after Donald Trump’s trans military ban came into effect last week.
Map Pesqueira was awarded a national three-year Reserve Officers’ Training Corps scholarship to fund his studies, according to Daily Texas Online.
However, due to Trump’s trans military ban—which came into effect last Friday (April 12)—his scholarship has been revoked by the US Department of Defence. He is now at risk of not being able to continue his studies and has started a fundraiser to finish his degree.
Transgender student Map Pesqueira’s dream was to serve in the military
“Since I’ve already had top surgery, hormone replacement therapy, gender marker and [a] name change, I can’t go in under this policy,” Pesqueira said.
“I’d automatically be discriminated. I really do see [the policy] as a waste of resources, money, time and personnel. It’s made figuring out my future education so much harder.”
Pesqueira went to UT to study and achieve his dream of serving in the military and becoming a filmmaker. He hopes that he can pursue a career in the military in the future.
“Because I have started medically transitioning, my scholarship is now void.”
– Transgender student Map Pesqueira
He has started a GoFundMe with the goal of raising $20,000 so he can continue studying through his sophomore year.
In a lengthy post on his GoFundMe page, Pesqueira wrote: “Since I was a kid, one of my biggest dreams was to pursue a career in the Army to serve my country.
Specna Arms/Pexels
‘I can no longer afford to attend without financial assistance’
“I happen to be a transgender male who started medically transitioning in 2018. I have been on hormone replacement therapy and living in my preferred gender for 15 months, just recently had top surgery, and have legally changed my name and gender marker.
“In January of 2019, the Supreme Court gave the green light to the Department of Defense to begin implementing a new policy that prohibits transgender people who have begun their transition as well as transgender people with a gender dysphoria diagnosis from entering the military.
“Because I have started medically transitioning, my scholarship is now void.
“Since my scholarship is now invalid, I can no longer afford to attend without financial assistance. I received little financial aid from the university despite having a single mother with a low-income and struggled to pay my own way through my first year.
“Until now, I remained under the impression that my scholarship would take care of my remaining 3 years, but that is no longer the case.”
He is now pleading with people to help him raise the required funds to continue his education.
