Rather than delay his enlistment, Comer decided to shave his beard and apply for the accommodation at a later date. In an email to Task & Purpose, Bass said the Air Force is continually reevaluating its policies. Despite being in line with regulations, airmen with waivers reported feeling stigmatized for wearing facial hair. According to the Department of Defense Instruction 1300. Beard News in Air Force Copyright 2022 Beard Waiver - All Rights Reserved. The U. S. Air Force has published new guidance for religious accommodations that allow airmen to wear beards, turbans and hijabs. 4 0 obj
Comer wore a beard with a religious accommodation waiver, but beards in the Air Force may become far more common after a uniform board considers facial hair in November. Many airmens dearest wish may soon come true if the Air Force greenlights a pilot program allowing some men to grow beards. As we work to build a more inclusive force, we are constantly assessing and evaluating all of the processes and programs that affect our Airmen, she said. We speculate that these members, irrespective of race/ethnicity, may perceive this bias against shaving waivers and choose to leave the service earlier.. But on July 18, the amn/nco/snco page posted a March 1 memo granting another Heathen airman, Staff Sgt. The regulation follows years of individual airmen and other service members receiving waivers for religious beards and apparel. Paragraph 1.5.2.3 should be renumbered as 1.5.2.4. The new study found that airmen with shaving waivers faced significantly longer wait times for promotions and were often barred from sought-after jobs such as Honor Guard, recruiting, military training instructors, or the Thunderbirds demonstration team. Changing policy, actually is the easy part, Wright said. I want to go all out with practing the religion (including reading the Quran like it is recommened during Ramadan. "They were well-respected. Also, do you have to be able to prove that you are that religion or can you just claim that you are a Muslim and thats that. For AFR waiver processing instructions see AFMAN 36-8001, Participation and Training Procedures. ), the Washington Post, and others. Beard hair longer than two inches must be rolled and/or tied to achieve the required length. The Air Force has granted several airmen permission to wear beards, turbans and the hijab for religious reasons in recent years. The Air Force Times reports on Air Force SSgt Garrett Sopchak, who just became the first US Air Force Airman to be allowed to wear a beard because he adheres to Norse Heathen religious beliefs. Want to write for Task & Purpose? Start with the chaplain, and work with them to route the request through your chain. 2 0 obj
(Garrett Sopchak) For nearly a year, the Air Force weighed a staff sergeant's request to grow a beard as part of his religious beliefs before. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. The Air Force also granted its first religious accommodation beard waiver, to a Muslim airman, in 2018. The hot towels help stimulate the skin to bring out any oils and sweat that can be used for a lubrication layer between the skin and the razor. Community for current and past members of the US Air Force. Previously, these airmen needed to get their waivers updated annually. The same was true for airmen trying to hit the rank of staff sergeant (E-5). Part of HuffPost Politics. At the end of the day, while we are continually out in front with initiatives that provide more opportunities for our airmen to serve to their full potential, we are cognizant that we are part of a broader military force.. Chance Saltzman outlined the three lines in a series of commanders notes published Jan., Thousands of Airmen and Guardians who remain unvaccinated against COVID-19 no longer have to get the shotsand those whofaced disciplinary action for failing to get vaccinated will have their records wiped clean. Paragraph 1.5.2.3 added: Members requesting a medical waiver to wear a beard must submit a letter of the Air Force JoAnne Bass, wants to reduce the branchs cultural bias against shaving waivers granted for medical or religious reasons. William Bailey, received a waiver to grow a beard in March. Press J to jump to the feed. Sample accommodation request memos included with the regulation said that the Air Force can order an airman to immediately shave or remove their turban or hijab if they need to be ready to wear a gas mask during an emergency. It interfaces with DAFPD 52-1, Chaplain Corps; Air Force Instruction (AFI) . By approaching recruiting centrally as a Total Force, Air Force Recruiting, The Air Force last week announced an expansive new ROTC scholarship available to older Cadets committed to commissioning, with the goal of recruiting and retaining more future Airmen in the program. There's no more reliable source for news about your Air Force. The hijab, or head scarf, can be made of a subdued material in a color that resembles the airmans assigned uniform, such as black, brown, green, tan or navy blue, the regulation said. addresses the Air Force grooming standard for beards: "[b]eards are not authorizedunless for medical reasons, when authorized by a commander on the advice of a medical official." An Airmen who requests an accommodation waiver to grow a beard for religious reasons must follow Accommodations, after all, arent about special treatment they are about ensuring that religiously observant Sikhs and others dont have to choose between staying true to our faith and serving our country.. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. Published Jul 14, 2021 8:57 AM EDT. Religious head coverings are also required to be free of designs or markings unless the individuals uniform has a camouflage pattern. Tim Chacon/Air National Guard. So far, the Air Force has banned beards for all except those who have five-year medical waivers for pseudofolliculitis barbae, or chronic razor bumps, or religious waivers for those for whom beards are central to their observance, like Sikhs, Jews, Muslims and Norse Heathens. Central figures in Norse mythology such as Odin and Thor are commonly depicted as wearing beards. In the event of a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or explosive threat, commanding officers could also ask someone wearing a hijab to remove it to ensure a proper gas mask fit. Airmen who need to grow out their facial hair in uniform can take heart that the top enlisted airman, Chief Master Sgt. This condition, which the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology says affects up to 60 percent of Black men, occurs when curved facial hairs grow back into the skin. The Brig. According to the memo, which was first posted on the unofficial Facebook page Air Force amn/nco/snco July 12, Sopchak can wear a neat, conservative beard that presents a professional, well-groomed military appearance and stays no more than two inches from the bottom of his chin. The updated regulations mandate that faith-based religious apparel requests can only be denied for a compelling government interest and the denial must be the least restrictive way the Air Force has of achieving that government interest. Though some white supremacist groups in recent years have co-opted Norse symbols such as runes, Sopchak rejected that and said his faith is not racist in any way. They also make offerings anything from food to drinks to physical objects to their gods during a ceremony called a blot, he said. The study would require only 100 to 150 service members, he said. The interviewing chaplain will then send the wing chaplain a memo on whether the airman has a sincerely-held belief, whether the accommodation is related to that belief, and how the Air Force policy places a burden on that belief. On Monday, Captain Toor and three other Sikhs sued the Marine Corps in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, saying the corps's refusal to grant a religious waiver is arbitrary and. Service spokesperson Ann Stefanek said the proposal is under discussion by the Black/African American Employment Strategy Team, but hasnt been approved. >_fn7dw)>S#a\7]zdWwgsZMA2!2/af>]]I+ .$sMOr])0`F\>-vxX|K
h%&ZG2xI%#}pxg@;%rE*q"TY(kfIeWgh&*$|- F'$_L2;&"bw.%i^XxzS\'Z+gQI,=b6)J|Se{Sl)xog`7^}T# N7 x+|B7 W2~@R>tA);|6[ +XnDnQi\k`LF. ~pkgEsHh,1%l|hJ However, most airmen who have waivers are Black, because they are more likely to be affected by pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) than White airmen. Its a little scraggly right now, Sopchak said. And if that airman is assigned to a unit that wears a beret of a particular color, the unit commander can order him to wear a turban of the same color. Singh wanted to serve in the U.S. military to defend the country that had taken his family in, according to the Sikh Coalition. <>
Anecdotal evidence and a July 2021 study in the journal Military Medicine indicate that airmen with shaving waivers are more often passed over for promotions and other professional opportunities because of their appearance. Correction: This story was updated at 6:53 p.m. to reflect correct information about religious waivers for beards. Imagine the man-hours saved when men dont have to go to the doctor to get approved for a shaving waiver, and then periodically renewed., Daniel Walker, another Facebook user, added: They keep relaxing grooming standards instead of giving us things that would actually increase our quality of life.. +BEeB5JiTx In addition to promoting one's own well-being and four pillars, respecting others whose viewpoints differ from them is expected from the total force. As described in sample memos included in the regulation, safety concerns might include wearing a gas mask or going within 25 feet of an operating aircraft. In a Tuesday update of the Department of the Air Force's COVID-19 response, the service announced it had approved nine religious accommodations, including eight through service members' major and field commands and one through a Department of the Air Force appeal. Seven months later, this reporter could not immediately find any such progress reports. The United States military continues to bend its strict grooming rules to appease Muslims, most recently allowing an Air Force sergeant to sport a beard for religious reasons. In addition to believing in the old Norse gods, he said, Heathens believe that they are descended from them. Hijabs, turbans and under-turbans (also known as patkas) should be free of designs and made of a subdued material in a color that closely resembles ones uniform. other similar condition s that prohibits regular facial shaving may requ est a waiver to wear a beard . The Air Force currently prohibits service members from growing beards unless they are granted a religious or medical waiver, a policy that has come under scrutiny lately after military. The Air Force has updated its grooming standards to formally allow Airmen to grow neatly trimmed beards, standardizing the religious or medical exemption process. The Sikh Coalition represents Airman 1st Class Gurchetan Singh, who is the first Sikh American to secure a religious accommodation to serve in the Air National Guard. Beards are generally frowned upon because of the U.S. militarys longstanding tradition of uniformity and attention to detail as well as concerns that certain gear, like gas masks, wouldnt tightly seal with hair in the way. The hammer of Thor, also known as Mjlnir, in 2013 was added to the list of religious symbols authorized to be engraved on gravestones at military cemeteries such as Arlington National Cemetery. So I am not some expert I just watch YouTube videos of the teachings of Islam. The updated regulation said beards must be no longer than two inches when measured from the bottom of the chin, and must be rolled and/or tied when longer than two inches. It is is up to the wing commander (or the unit's equivalent of such a commander) to make the final decision. Now, updated Air Force regulations make clearer and smoother the path for personnel to request and obtain a similar religious waiver. Capture a web page as it appears now for use as a trusted citation in the future. While these issues affected airmen of all races who had shaving waivers equally, Black or African-American airmen made up the majority of the waiver holders and thus bore a disproportionate share of the consequences. Rathour graduated Security Forces technical training on Sept. 26, 2019. "Sikhs are allowed to wear beards and turbans because it actually is a religious requirement of their faith that they do so. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) introduced the Space National Guard Establishment Act on, From Abraham Lincoln to the Tuskegee Airmen to lessons from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Airmen in need of a waiver could try laser hair removal or chemical treatment, but many airmen are reluctant to undertake them because it could permanently alter their ability to grow facial hair, the study authors wrote. While supporters of current Air Force policy may have anecdotal evidence of one to five people who they see fail the fit test, he said, that cant be extrapolated to hundreds of thousands of airmen.. Still, it seems the Honor Guard has not completely embraced shaving waivers. The Air Force in recent years has begun granting waivers to allow airmen including airmen of the Muslim, Sikh and Norse Heathen or pagan faiths to grow beards for religious reasons. In a June 18 memo, Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Dorothy Hogg authorized the longer shaving waivers for airmen with pseudofolliculitis barbae, or razor bumps, effective immediately. In 2018, the Air Force granted its first "religious accommodation beard waiver" to a Muslim airman, allowing him to wear a beard while in uniform. Below are current coronavirus disease 2019 statistics for Department of Air Force personnel: *These numbers include all of the cases that were reported since our last update on Jan. 18. "There is no religious requirement for beards in Heathenry," the post read. One civilian study from 2018 showed that 98% of study participants with an eighth-inch of beard passed the fit test with respirators that are similar to the M-50 gas masks used in the military in terms of material and fit. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Be aware though, that the belief must be sincere, which means you will likely be interviewed by the chaplain about your beliefs, and they will advise your CC on whether or not your beliefs are sincere, or you're just trying to get a beard. Maysaa Ouza, the first Air Force Judge Advocate General Corps officer to wear the hijab, was also featured in a short NBC documentary last year. The wing chaplain or equivalent will then assign a chaplain to interview the requesting airman about what is motivating him or her to ask for it. The Air Force plans to update its Air Force Instruction regulations governing dress and personal appearance and medical care management to reflect this change.