Why the Marine Corps may nix gender identifiers for drill instructors
By Hope Hodge Seck
Dec 20, 12:28 AM
Will it be the end of "sir" and "ma'am"? (Lance Cpl. Dakota Dodd/Marine Corps)
A new academic report on efforts to integrate Marine Corps boot camp recommends dropping gender-specific salutations for drill instructors, but service leaders are not convinced they want to take that step.
The lengthy report, commissioned by the Corps from the University of Pittsburgh in 2020 and completed in 2022, points out that half of the military services already have done away with gendered identifiers for training staff.
“The Army, Navy, and Coast Guard effectively de-emphasize gender in an integrated environment,” the report states. “Instead of saying ‘ma’am’ or ‘sir,’ recruits in these Services refer to their drill instructors using their ranks or roles followed by their last names. Gendered identifiers prime recruits to think about or visually search for a drill instructor’s gender first, before their rank or role.”
The proposal was under consideration by a Marine Corps leadership team assembled to guide service efforts to integrate boot camp, Col. Howard Hall, chief of staff for Marine Corps Training and Education Command, told the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services in December.
But, he said, leaders had concerns.
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2022/12/20/why-the-marine-corps-may-nix-gender-identifiers-for-drill-instructors/
