President Donald Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is so obsessed with grooming in the U.S. Armed Forces that he’s cracking down in the name of military readiness.
A number of new rules and regulations require new “standards” of grooming and appearance, according to a new report, and those new regs seem to intentionally target minorities and women.
The rules include everything from banning eyelash extensions and most nail polish colors to offering laser hair removal on the government’s dime and random policies on the length of cuffs and shirt sleeves.
The new directive states that all these changes are “in support of Army readiness” and aimed at restoring the “warrior ethos” and overall fitness across military ranks, which is a head-scratcher because these new rules have nothing to do with the ability to move effectively and swiftly.
“We’re looking at overall fitness standards, overall grooming standards, overall basic standards across our formations that we believe have slipped certainly under the previous administration, but over decades,” Hegseth told Congress last month, journalist Ken Klippenstein reported in his newsletter.
And in a February town hall meeting, Hegseth lamented, “It’s almost like the broken windows theory of policing: when you ignore the small stuff from criminals … it creates a culture where big stuff you’re not held accountable for.”
Hegseth also changed the military’s shaving policy earlier this year. Members who had skin complications from shaving too often were previously allowed to apply for medical waivers.
In March, the U.S. Marine Corps issued new guidance on its shaving waivers that could result in the expulsion of service members with a recurring condition of pseudofolliculitis barbae, or PFB, a painful skin condition more commonly known as razor bumps or ingrown hairs, which affects more Black men than any other group.
The American Osteopathic College of Dermatology says razor bumps resulting from shaving affect 60 percent of African-American men and other people with curly hair. The condition can cause severe and painful scarring. The AOCD says letting the beard grow is a 100 percent effective treatment for PFB.
The order specifies three treatment plans according to how serious a member’s PFB is, and, in the worst cases, a fourth phase of the treatment plan includes the option for laser hair removal at taxpayer expense.
The Air Force and Space Force also updated their guidance on grooming waivers in January.
The military requires a clean shave for all enlisted men, unless they receive a waiver.
Similar to shaving waivers, the military is now banning eyelash extensions, something else that predominantly impacts Black and brown people the most. And nail polish has to be “clear or French or American Manicure only.”
Even certain footwear is now mandated in the jumble of new directives. No short boots. They must fully cover the ankle to almost mid-calf.
And how about this new rule on shirt and jacket cuffs: “the cuffs will remain visible, and the sleeve will rest at, or within 1-inch of, the forearm when the arm is bent at a 90-degree angle”; though “Commanders may prohibit rolling of sleeves and folding of cuffs.”
Some critics have slammed Hegseth’s new policies and his justification of the grooming standards as “completely ignorant.”
“When I was in the infantry, several of my buddies who were black had shaving profiles cuz it tore them up. He’s trying to get rid of that so he can justify ‘de-blacking’ the military,” wrote an Army veteran. “Meanwhile, when I attended a change of command ceremony with our sister battalion in the German armory… many of them had beards. And that was 30+ years ago. I’ve had many bosses like this guy over the years. They don’t know what they’re doing so they go overboard on the rules and turn into a paperwork disciplinarian. Nobody ever likes that boss.”
“Now that is what Pete is qualified to do: manage the lash lengths, nail colors and coarseness of beards!!!! I’m feeling safer already!,” another Instagram user wrote.
Great Job Shelby E. & the Team @ Atlanta Black Star Source link for sharing this story.
