Warpaint is up! Marines endorse two-tone NAIL POLISH for military personnel and longer hair to “positively impact diversity, equality and inclusiveness.”
- The Marine Corps Uniform Council approved changes to grooming and appearance last month.
- Female Marines will be allowed to wear ombre or French manicures.
- The Corps approved thicker hairstyles and trimmed hairlines for Marines, as well as the use of black and olive drab socks.
The US Marine Corps will allow service members to wear longer hair, two-tone nail polish and black socks along with their combat uniforms, as part of a push for more “diversity” and “inclusiveness.”
The military department released the changes on Wednesday after they were approved by the Marine Corps Uniform Commission last month.
As part of the update, Marines will be allowed to grow their “mass of their hair” up to three inches – an increase from the current two inches – meaning they can have thicker hair.
In addition, male Marines will be able to “comb” their hair, including removing the “widow’s peak” or shaving off excess forehead hair to make their hairline tidier.
However, women are still forbidden to wear their hair in a ponytail.
The US Marine Corps will allow service members to wear longer hair, two-tone nail polish for female service members, and black socks with their combat uniforms.
Other changes include allowing military personnel to use special characters on their name ribbons and allowing men to cut their hair.
For female Marines, the Corps has authorized the use of ombré and French manicures in service uniforms. Previously, Marines were only allowed to wear clear or “flesh” polish that matched their skin tone and covered the entire nail, according to the Marine Times.
Under Marine Corps regulations applying to service or dress uniforms, female service members are still required to wear only pink or red nail polish, which must “complement the skin tone.”
The guidelines prohibit the use of “multiple colors and decorative embellishments”.
First Lieutenant Phillip Parker, a spokesman for the Marine Corps Office of Training and Education, said the goal of these changes is to “positively impact diversity, equality and inclusion.”
Some critics on Twitter were quick to jump at the nail polish rules, calling them “woken up.”
“Ridiculous… you get enlisted in the Corps; culture, and not vice versa, ”one of the users was indignant. “The corps hasn’t woken up, it’s warriors.
Another said in a similar vein: “I miss the US Marines who did NOT wake up when I was there. If you don’t like the culture, don’t join. the goal is to fight and win wars, not social experiments.”
Clothing changes introduced this week include the addition of more appropriate maternity shirts and tunics with adjustable straps, as well as a nursing tank top for pregnant and lactating Marines.
The Corps adopts a more appropriate version of the maternity uniform that uses side tabs, with the current maternity service uniform and khaki maternity shirt. In addition, a nursing tank top is available to facilitate access for pumping and breastfeeding.
The Marine Corps consistently lags behind other branches of the military in integrating women. Less than 9 percent of the Corps’ 185,000 troops are women.
Another addition to the soldier’s wardrobe will be black or olive socks. Previously, Marines were only allowed to wear coyote-colored hosiery for official purposes.
The Uniform Board also decided to allow Marines whose last names have special characters such as apostrophes, accents, and hyphens to display them on their standard name ribbons.
The Marine Corps has exceeded its recruiting targets for 2021, with the active duty target increased from 28,048 to 29,600.