As
the turban and unshorn hair and beard are tenets of the Sikh religion,
the Army's policies since 1984 have prevented Sikhs from enlisting by
barring those features. But the Army recently graduated its first Sikh
man in a generation after granting a religious exemption for his turban
and beard because the military says it needs his language skills.
Specialist Simran Lamba was recruited under a special program as the
military seeks speakers of two Indian languages -- Hindi and Punjabi.
The Army has two Sikhs who became medical officers this year, but Lamba
is the first one in the enlisted ranks.
Lt.
Col. Bob Maginnis (USA-Ret.) says the military is supposed to remove
the distinctive characteristics of individuals' appearance "where we
allow significant differences such as appearance to exist." But the
Army's religious exemption "undermines the trust and confidence we have
in one another."
"Unfortunately, I think the political correctness crowd out there would
impose upon our culture, as well as our military, standards that are
completely unrealistic and I think very dangerous," he laments.
Likewise, Elaine Donnelly of the Center for Military Readiness (CMR) thinks it is a mistake to grant exceptions in uniform standards.
"I
think that opens the door to other demands being made by individuals in
a way that would be harmful to the military," she suggests. "It's not
just about one soldier. In the military, you don't get to wear what you
want any time of day, and I think [this] is an accommodation that is
unreasonable and should not have been granted."
Maginnis further contends that if the military is so desperate for
personnel with specific language skills, it should hire Sikhs as
civilians.