Donald Trump’s choice to be the next Army secretary is Tennessee Republican state Sen. Mark Green. Although trying to walk some of this back, Green could not be a worse choice for the job, and not only for failure to respect diversity but also for his active statements which only serve to harm inclusion and acceptance for all Americans. Green has a deplorable record, stereotyping and trafficking in harmful rhetoric against Muslims and the LGBT community, as well as cozying up to conspiracy theories and anti-Muslim propaganda.
Scott Simpson, public advocacy director for Muslim Advocates, issued the following statement on the pending nomination of Tennessee State Senator Mark Green for Secretary of the Army:
“You can’t lead a diverse army while having contempt for diversity. Our armed forces are filled with patriotic Americans of all faiths, races, sexual orientations and gender identities, and Mark Green’s naked bigotry disqualifies him for the job of Army Secretary.
According to Green, Iraqi ‘high value targets’ he encountered while on tour smelled like ‘curry mixed with sweat.’ When teaching about religion in public schools, he thinks that Islam should be excluded except when referring to a ‘Muslim horde’ and ‘the assault of Islam’ during the Ottoman Empire. Green also traffics in troubling conspiracy theories, referring to President Obama as ‘B Hussein Obama’ and citing anti-Muslim propaganda throughout his book.
This is not a man equipped to lead a 21st Century army that looks like America. His anti-Muslim and anti-LGBT bigotry has no place in any Senate-confirmed position. The Senate Armed Services Committee should immediately reject this nomination.”
Green is also noted for the anti-transgender statements he made in a radio interview last year:
Green believes that part of his mission as a public official is to “crush evil” ― and that opposing transgender equality policies is key to that effort.
Huffington Post:
In June, Green said he opposed allowing people to use the restroom that corresponds with their gender identity, rather than the sex assigned at birth. He told an online radio show he believed the matter should be left up to the states rather than the federal government, and then cited the safety of women as a key reason he personally opposes transgender equality in public accommodations.
“There are 300,000 rapes in the United States every year,” Green said. “Three hundred thousand women who are sexually assaulted by predators. We know this. It’s documented. It’s factual. To think that some young guy isn’t going to take advantage of the system where we’re going to allow guys to go into the bathroom ― the women’s bathroom ― to think that it’s not going to happen is just ridiculous.”
As head of the Army, Green would oversee a force that’s fully integrated, since the Pentagon ended its ban on transgender people serving openly. There is nothing can Green could do to escape this sentiment this sentiment or these statements. If confirmed, he would certainly be a far cry from the Obama administration’s Secretary of the Army, Eric Fanning, who was the first openly gay person to serve in the position. Under no circumstances should this man be confirmed. Contact your reps and express your disdain.