Transgender
Meet the Trans Service Members Attending MTV's VMAs
These transgender troops will be the real stars walking the red carpet at tonight's televised awards ceremony.
August 27 2017 12:45 PM EST
August 27 2017 1:02 PM EST
dnlreynolds
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These transgender troops will be the real stars walking the red carpet at tonight's televised awards ceremony.
MTV's Video Music Awards has taken a stand for transgender rights.
The network confirmed that it had invited transgender service members and veterans to walk the red carpet and attend its star-studded awards show.
Trans service members Logan Ireland, Jennifer Peace, Sterling James Crutcher, and Akira Wyatt, as well as veterans Laila Ireland and Brynn Tannehill, will accompany representatives of GLAAD, including CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, and the LGBT military group SPARTA to The Forum arena Sunday in Inglewood, Calif.
"Any patriot who is putting their own life at risk to fight for our freedom and stands for equality is a hero at MTV, and to young people everywhere," Chris McCarthy, the president of MTV, told New Now Next.
The invitation follows President Donald Trump's Friday approval of a memo implementing a military ban of transgender service members. Specifically, the memo directs the Department of Defense not to bring new transgender recuits into the military and bans transition-related health care for trans people currently serving, while possibly allowing some of the latter to remain in the armed forces.
The pre-show and red carpet will begin streaming at 6 p.m. Eastern on Twitter and MTV.com. The VMAs begin at 8 p.m. Eastern. Learn more about the transgender service members and veterans, who will also be handling GLAAD's Instagram during the event, below.
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis @TransMilitary Former Navy Lt. Commander Brynn Tannehill served as a Naval Aviator and campaign analyst in deployments from 2000-2008.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis @TransMilitary Airman Sterling James Crutcher serves as Munitions technician at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, & deployed to Qatar Air Base in 2017.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis @TransMilitary During one of her overseas tours in Japan & Malaysia, US Army Captain Jennifer Peace was rated #1 out of 11 intelligence officers.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis @TransMilitary Petty Officer Akira Wyatt is a Filipino-American who enlisted in the US Navy in 2011, and provides medical support to the Marine Corps.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis @TransMilitary Air Force SSGT Logan Ireland heads the main security command center at Peterson Air Force Base, CO & has deployed to Afghanistan & Qatar.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008
\u201c@vmas @sarahkateellis Army vet Laila Ireland served 12 years in the United States Army including two combat tours in Iraq.\u201d— GLAAD (@GLAAD) 1503778008