i know trans people cant join the armed forces but can trans men and women have law enforcement jobs like be a cop or fbi agent?

I know for law enforcement it is totally possible.  There was a big news story/case in OK where an mtf transitioned on the job - got fired and she sued and won.

I don't know on a federal level - I would imagine that it's possible

I know when I lived in LosAngeles the police department was openingly recruiting and trying to find LGBT folks to work.  I think alot will depend on where you are living

The short answer is yes, the long answer is that there are complications.

I'm currently working on going into law enforcement, have my bachelors in Crime and Delinquency Studies and have interned with the local police department.

I would suggest starting your search at the Transgender Community of Police and Sheriffs (TCOPS) http://www.tcops-international.org/ . That is an organization that is comprised on trans officers/deputies/troopers/etc. They also have a yahoo group for mentoring those who are trans and trying to get into law enforcement. That group is carefully moderated and you'll have to introduce yourself, but they've been a big support to me.

What part of the country you apply to will also impact how easy it is to access the field. I'm currently in Kansas, have been rejected from one department (which may or may not be due to my trans status), and frequently have to explain almost everything about being trans. I'm still debating applying to the department in Burlington, Vermont due to the fact they list Trans next to male and female on their personal history form. With that in mind there are cases of trans officers transitioning in the midwest. here is a link about a mtf officer who transitioned on the job in 2007 in Kansas City http://www.kmbc.com/news/13429381/detail.html

If its what you want to do, go for it. Keep in mind that with the current economy many departments aren't getting the funding for new officers and the positions that are open are extremely competitive. Epi is right about the multi-hurdle hiring process. If you want me to share some of my experiences going through the application process/changing my name at the same time I'd be happy to do so. I also have resources on how to prepare for the civil service, physical agility test, oral board and the rest of the process I'd love to pass on.

Burlington, Vermont makes SF look conservative.

From my experience with feds, anyone who falls into ftm sterotypes, wouldn't fit in.

Yeah, despite the hip, urbane and ever-so-cool kind of feds you see on Criminal Minds, the FBI is (as it always has been) one of the most up-tight group of predominantly straight, married¹ Catholic men you're ever going to come across outside of a church.  It has a long-standing corporate culture that has seemed (for better and worse) to be pretty impervious to change.

Other Federal Agencies with police powers have different cultures, from the DEA which likes to hire cowboys (tons of ex-spec forces types), to the Treasury Department which seems to have a pretty diverse culture inside it.

All of them though really want only top students from top schools.




1. They really want you to be a lawyer or CPA too (though engineering and chemistry have also been popular of late)  They tend to look down on criminal justice majors, for the FBI a Criminal Justice degree is pretty worthless.  Like most federal jobs, few people without the proper education get in.  The FBI and most federal 'special agents' require a degree from an accredited 4 year college - and a terminal degree is even better.  So a JD for law, a PhD for chemistry, and the schools are mostly the Service Academies and Ivy League, like most high ranking federal jobs, though NYU, American, Fordham, GW, Gtown, University of Miami, Northwestern, Georgia Tech, Emory, Boston University and Boston College are also popular)  Though to restate what I said to begin with: They really want you to be a lawyer.  The high number of lawyers who are special agents is part of the reason for the FBI's conviction rate.

I tried to get a job as a corrections officer in NY. My father works as a guard. I passed the written test, physical, and written psych test with flying colors. I failed the oral psychological test. They asked if I ever have been in therapy. Being honest, I said yes, for gender identity issues. I work in a professional enviroment, I've gone on many interviews in my life, and I have conducted many interviews. I have fairly good judgement regarding how people perceive me. In all honesty, that is the only thing I can think of that would have resulted in me failing (they don't actually tell you why you failed). I really regret not lying.

Quote from: JesseO on August 22, 2011, 06:33:51 PM
I tried to get a job as a corrections officer in NY. My father works as a guard. I passed the written test, physical, and written psych test with flying colors. I failed the oral psychological test. They asked if I ever have been in therapy. Being honest, I said yes, for gender identity issues. I work in a professional enviroment, I've gone on many interviews in my life, and I have conducted many interviews. I have fairly good judgement regarding how people perceive me. In all honesty, that is the only thing I can think of that would have resulted in me failing (they don't actually tell you why you failed). I really regret not lying.

Was never asked about identity issues.  I think the only one that made me chuckle was when I was asked if I "peed in the shower?"  I've known other people that were asked if they "ever thought about wearing their spouses underwear" or "drink out of the milk carton".

Reapply for the job next year, you'll probably have a different person and they may not ask that.  But I don't think the reason you didn't get the job was because of how you answered that question, it's because your father already works for the DOC in that capacity.  (I'm assuming you were applying to work at the same facility that he does.)  There's rules/polices restricting family hires; nepotism tends to piss a lot of people off.

nepotism tends to piss a lot of people off

One of the things I always like about both academia and show-biz (where it's so established it's almost sacred) is that both of them rigorously practice nepotism.  I've always gained great solace and comfort in the knowledge that no matter how hard it gets for them, my kids could walk into any IATSE union office, give them my name and union number and be put to work right away at more than $30 an hour, and would remain at the top of the casual hire list there forever.  My older one does it a bunch, growing family and all. 

Quote from: Epi on August 22, 2011, 06:41:40 PM
Was never asked about identity issues.  I think the only one that made me chuckle was when I was asked if I "peed in the shower?"  I've known other people that were asked if they "ever thought about wearing their spouses underwear" or "drink out of the milk carton".

Reapply for the job next year, you'll probably have a different person and they may not ask that.  But I don't think the reason you didn't get the job was because of how you answered that question, it's because your father already works for the DOC in that capacity.  (I'm assuming you were applying to work at the same facility that he does.)  There's rules/polices restricting family hires; nepotism tends to piss a lot of people off.

Unfortunately, it's a very long, complicated process in NY. They put you wherever in the state they see fit. There would actually be virtually no chance I'd be in the same facility as him. They start you "down state" in the bad places no one wants, and as your gain senority you try and post your way back to wherever you live. From the time I took the civil service test to the time I did everything else and failed was about three and a half years. I also had to make three 6 hour trips (and spend a lot of money) because they make you go to the "central headquarters" (for lack of a better description) to complete everything. They won't be having another test for a year or two...maybe in about five years I can have another opportunity.