Religious Accommodation Policy Change
All branches of military service can fully expect full-length beards, tattoos, piercings, and turbans amongst the ranks of military service members while in uniform! Senior leaders should be aware of Department of Defense (DOD) policy change in regards to religious accommodations of service members, because of the impact these changes will have on all branches of the armed forces of the United States. This paper will state the background related to the DOD religious accommodation policy, discuss the effects on uniform standards, and provide recommendations for change to the current policy.
Background
In January 1986, S. Simcha Goldman filed a lawsuit and fought for freedom of religious expression for service members after receiving disciplinary action for failure to comply with uniform regulation while working as a medical officer in a military hospital (Military law review, 1986). This lawsuit eventually landed in the Supreme Court, and led to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger to question, “Where the logic of religious exemptions from the dress code would stop, in a nation with hundreds of denominations” ("High court pondering," 1986).
The Department of Defense states its responsibility to appropriately apply consideration when drafting and enacting policy involving civil liberties protected under United States Constitution with regards to the American people, its employees, and members of the armed Forces("Dod civil liberties," 2012). New policy on the “Accommodations of Religion” took effect on 10 February 2014 allowing military service members to wear religious articles of clothing and to alter grooming standards while in uniform with respect to their specific denomination of faith(“Ac...
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Department of Defense, Director of Administration and Management. (2012). Dod civil liberties program(DoDI 1000.29). Retrieved from website: http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/100029p.pdf
Department of Defense, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. (2014).Accommodation of religious practices within the military services (DoDI 1300.17). Retrieved from website: http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/130017p.pdf
High court pondering religious attire in military. (1986, Janurary 15). Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/15/us/high-court-pondering-religious-attire-in-military.html
Washington, G. (1790). George washington's letter to the hebrew congregation of newport. Retrieved from http://www.tourosynagogue.org/index.php/history-learning/tsf-intro-menu/slom-scholarship/86-washington-letter
This letter, unfortunately, was read by the King and confirmed his views on it, as well. King George III took advantage of John Adam’s writing to demonstrate that the colonist were not being insincere, nor convincing in their attempts for a tranquil, respectable negotiation, also known as, the Olive Branch
In 2005 the Air Force was devastated by allegations of religious harassment and discrimination at the Air Force Academy. Seven years later, Air Force leaders are still struggling to find an appropriate balance that will continue to allow airmen their religious freedom while honoring their commitment to duty. The debate over religion and duty came to the forefront again in February when Lt. Gen. Ronnie Hawkins gave a presentation titled “Ronnie’s Rules” at his first commander’s call. In it included two references to God. The first was when he stated, “Always put God first and stay within his will,” and the second, “Always remember God is good,” concluded his brief. Some members of Lt. Gen. Hawkins staff were offended by his brief and reported him to a military watchdog group known as the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Airmen throughout the service have mixed reactions towards “Ronnie’s Rules.” Some have said that he should be allowed to talk about his personal beliefs, while others viewed this as undue pressure on subordinates to follow his faith. It is these types of views that are dividing the Air Force.
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In 1950, President Harry S. Truman implemented discharge policies for homosexual service members in the Uniform Code of Military Justice. This would allow military leaders to discharge any service member who was thought to be homosexual. In 1992, during President Bill Clinton’s campaign, he promises to lift that ban. Not being able to do just that, President Clinton issued a directive referred to as ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’. This stated that no service member should be asked about their sexual orientation. Mackubin Thomas Owens wrote the article “Gay Men and Women in the Military Disrupt Unit Cohesion” in 2009 right after President Clinton was again calling for the end of forcing homosexuals to live in secret. In his article he states that homosexuals living openly in the military will take away from military effectiveness and put the other service member’s lives in danger. Throughout most of the article he uses other resources, polls and opinions on the matter verses clearly stating his own. Most of the resources he uses are military connected or
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This is no ordinary coalition. It included the American Civil Liberties Union, and the National Association of Evangelicals; People for the American Way, and Concerned Women for America; the American Muslim Council, and the American Jewish Congress; the Traditional Values Coalition, and B'nai Brith of the Anti-Defamation League. In the opinion of the Reverend Oliver Thomas, Chairman of Coalition for the Free Exercise of Religion, and former General Counsel of the Baptist Joint Committee, this was the most diverse coalition of religious and civil liberties. All of these organizations have been willing to lay aside their deep ideological differences in order to unite behind a principle -- religious liberty for all Americans. (Questions and Answers, Map of the RFRA)
Schultz, David, and John R. Vile. The Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America. 710-712. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale Virtual Reference Library, n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2010. .
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There are many militaries throughout the world but the US Military is seen as the most professional and capable military in the world. We are perceived this way due to our rules and regulations that have branched from our fundamental principles and doctrine. Uniformity is one of our leading regulations in the military. Uniformity is what makes the military have a professional image. It is the basis of our instructions and regulations concerning the dress and appearance of our military personnel. Recently however, the Pentagon has decided that it is more important to accommodate certain groups of people then to have a professional and uniform military. On January 22nd 2014 the Pentagon passed a new policy that is easing up on the existing regulations by allowing beards, turbans, headscarf’s, tattoos and piercings of religious nature to be worn while in uniform (Pellerin, 2014). This new policy has started a heated debate about whether this is a good idea or not. I myself believe that this policy should not be allowed because it is undermining basic military values, lowering our standards on regulations, and it is a start to a new undesirable military force.
Department of the Army. (1992) FM 21-1 Legal Guide For Commanders. Washington D.C.: United States Army Publishing Authority.
Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. (2002, October). Religious discrimination – Accommodating differences in the workplace. Retrieved from: http://www.vssp.com/CM/Articles/articles871.asp