Three cadets who earned their diplomas from the US Air Force Academy last week were not commissioned along with their peers. They were barred from taking the oath as Donald Trump recently announced transgender ban in the military.
Hunter Marquez, one of the three cadets who will not be allowed to serve despite graduating from the US Air Force Academy’s class of 2025 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, had spent years preparing to become a combat systems officer. He earned dual degrees in aeronautical engineering and applied mathematics, as per Daily Gazette. He even met all the physical standards for men in the US Air Force.
Three cadets unable to commission in the U.S. Air Force as a result of President Trump’s ban on transgender troops in the military.
Hunter Marquez, one of the three, double majored in math and engineering and met the physical standards for men at USAFA: https://t.co/Socbd86qgg— Alex Edwards (@AMEdwards21) May 30, 2025
When it was time for years of his hard work to finally pay off, the rule changed. On May 6, the Supreme Court gave a green flag to the Trump administration to enforce Executive Order 14183, which bans transgender people from serving in the military.
Donald Trump, in his executive order, argued that identifying as trans “conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle” and that it would hamper military preparedness.
Trump’s executive order was heavily criticized by LGBTQ activists. The Supreme Court’s ruling on the order served as the final blow, crushing the careers and dreams of many.
US Supreme Court lets Trump’s transgender military ban take effect https://t.co/bAIU2zUnVu https://t.co/bAIU2zUnVu
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 6, 2025
Marquez and the two other cadets were stopped from taking the oath. They were also warned that they will have to repay the cost of their education if they refuse to leave voluntarily, as per Advocate.com. The education of cadets is funded by US taxpayers which is valued in hundreds of thousands of dollars.
There was no question about the physical and mental fitness of the barred cadets. A US Air Force Academy staff member anonymously told The Gazette, “We want warfighters. We want people with grit, that are resilient. They have done all that.”
The three of them graduated with distinction but it was their sexual orientation that no longer fit the “military standards”.
Marquez is a plaintiff in Talbott v. United States. It is a legal case challenging Trump’s executive order that bans transgenders in the military. The case was initially filed on behalf of six active personnel and two seeking enlistment. 12 more people later joined the case as plaintiffs. Marquez wrote in his statement that the executive order describes people of his sexual orientation as “undisciplined, selfish, and dishonest.”
He added, “None of those are correct descriptions of my character or my abilities. I have achieved alongside my peers throughout my time at the Academy.”
The heartbroken cadet said, “There’s still a lot of anger and frustration and sadness. Just because I have worked so hard to be a second lieutenant in the Air Force, and at the very end that was taken from me.”
The alumni of the military academy have come forward in solidarity as hundreds of them have signed an open letter defending transgender cadets. As per military.com, the letter reads, “Being transgender is in no way incompatible with any of our Academies’ cherished virtues and values.”
