Sikhs fight Army over bans on turbans, uncut hair

AR 670-1
"...(2) Soldiers may wear religious headgear while in uniform if the headgear meets the following criteria.
a) It must be subdued in color...
b) It must be of a style and size that can be completely covered by standard military headgear, and it cannot interfere with the proper wear or functioning of protective clothing or equipment...
...goatees and beards are not authorized..."

and that's a fact jack
 
Originally posted by jag312:
I have two comments: how about an all Sikh regiment with a special military dress code for those that want to dress in the manner that their religion dictates.
Click to expand...

Might work in the British Army, but Truman desegregated the US Army in 1948.

One of the things the US Army does in BCT is try to remove the differences between soldiers and I believe this is a good thing. When I was in, no one really cared where you were from or how much (or little) money your parents had or what religion you were.

Everyone knows the rules. If they don't want to get a shave and a haircut like everyone else then they don't want to be soldiers bad enough.

I don't buy the part about their children being discriminated against either. Most children and adolescents pick on people that are different from them, often with great cruelty. It's not right, but it is the way it is and it, to the best of my knowledge covers all racial lines in our country.

Just my $0.02... YMMV
 
Back in 1972-73 we had a Sikh Staff Sergeant in HQ Battery when I was at Ft. Hood. He wore an OD turban and kept his beard neat. I never had much dealings with the guy, but as far as I know he did his job, never caused trouble and was a well respected NCO.
I figure that as long as it doesn't interfere with their duties, cut 'em some slack.

Then again, that was back before everybody got all politically correct and made such a big deal over someone's religion.
 
Make no mistake, I like the Sikhs. I'm just not sure some people ought to be more special (for lack of a better word) than others in the military. The "superiority" some junior officers model is bad enough.
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One of the cornerstones of our culture is religious freedom, but in the military you gotta draw the line somewhere. There is not a draft and there is no constitutional right to serve in the military.
 
As much as I admire the Sikhs the needs of the US Army, who paid for their education comes first. It appears that these two Young men got a "free" education knowing that they were not going to be willing to fulfill their obligations when the time came.
Now they need to either serve, and as the army dictates, not as their religion or tastes dictate, or return the money at whatever interest and conditions their contract would dictate.
Too bad, should there be a change in our regulations Sikhs might be excellent soldiers. In this case I don't believe in changing the rules to allow in a doctor and dentist. In the future perhaps enlistment personnel could be more careful who they get to sign up.
 
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