US Army to change hair and grooming guidelines to promote ‘equity, inclusion, and diversity’

"This is one way we are working to improve the lives of our soldiers, our force, by putting people first, understanding their concerns, taking action when necessary and maintaining their razor-sharp edge of readiness," said Lieutenant General Gary Brito. "Equity, inclusion and diversity are all very important to Army readiness."

While the old policy was meant to prevent women from developing alopecia, a form of hair loss, the Army says that the new rules will allow women to better express their gender identity and cultural expression, as well as allow for greater ease of motion.

"We went with let's not tell a woman the length of hair she can have. So now, we will specify no minimum hair length for women in the Army," said Sergeant Major Brian Sanders.

"One thing we can never forget is that at the end of the day, our women are mothers, are spouses, they are sisters and they definitely want to be able to maintain their identity," he continued.

There are some restrictions remaining, however. Lipstick must be "professional," and the changes do not apply to combat situations.

The change in policy comes shortly after President Joe Biden issued an executive order titled "Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation," which he signed on his first day in office. The policy prohibits federal institutions from enacting internal policies which would be considered biased on the basis of gender identity.

It also comes several months after Secretary of Defense Mark Esper ordered a review of Army grooming standards to identify racially prejudiced practices.

The US Air Force also instituted a policy last week allowing women to wear their hair longer, while the Navy allowed women to sport ponytails in 2018.