Marine Corps Stories: Long Hairs

Lieutenant Colonel Twyla Herrick considered her unit to be in top working order. She was a 5 foot seven inch brown-skinned woman. Her face belied her forty seven years as a military woman. She had ensured that her Marines developed the skills they would need, not just for the Marine Corps, but for life. She had instituted several policies regarding proper conduct. One of these was a ban on the terms “WM’s” “FM’s” “split tails” and of course, “long hairs.” In her case it was ironic, as she kept a close cut almost to the point of baldness. So when it was brought to her attention that a group of female Marines were calling themselves long hairs without permission, she reacted.

“Come in here Natick.”

“Aye, ma’am.”

“Now, it shows that you were among the ones who violated the new rule regarding using derogatory names for female Marines. Is this the case?”

“Yes, ma’am. Corporals Corver and Warrington and I, we just started using the term after the ban, ironically...ma’am.” This was the case, as they were women, but all of them had long hair. They just fashioned their hair to comply with regulations. So Natick sported a dark brown braid, tied in a bun and setting off her blue-black skin.

“This is to say that you said these names in jest?”

“Yes.”

“So, I am to surmise that you young ladies were calling each other these names to thumb the nose at the boy’s club establishment and not my order to not say them anymore?”

“Yes, ma’am. It was just to throw shade at the men who truly don’t consider us Marines. That’s why we started using them. Not out of disrespect to you.”

“You know you have freedom of speech, but in this beloved Corps, it is severely limited. When a commanding officer issues an order, she expects it to be followed to the letter.” Oddly, she had switched to the third person.

“I see that now.”

“Do you know the story of Opha May Johnson?”

“From what little we learned about her in Boot’...Boot Camp, ma’am.” Natick replied.

Herrick continued, “She marked an era forever to be championed by Marines like you. She kicked in the door so that you might have opportunities to advance in the Corps.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Natick said.

“And so it is up to us to continue her legacy of fighting, side-by-side, and with the same political freedom as our male counterparts. You know, I thought about the ban...I thought I would corral a few knucklehead male Marines using these terms, but here you stand before me at parade rest. I can see the irony. I get it, but I want you to stop it. The cases are primarily Any Mouse based and are starting to mount up, quite frankly. So, as your commanding officer, I’m telling you to drop it. For Miss Opha May.”

“Aye, ma’am.”

“Besides, what could you do except passively show aggression against the men in our squadron? They’re going to use it in the barracks, on the phone, on the Internet. While I cannot control all speech, I can definitely put a damper on how language is used. I want to make sure all Marines are treated with dignity and respect under my command. It is imperative that we show discipline and esprit de corps in relation to our fellow Marines.” Herrick said, resolutely.

“Yes, ma’am. I totally agree with you. I will watch my words in front of my superiors, as well as in front of junior Marines. I will tell Corver and Warrington we must cease using these terms for the good of the Corps.”

“That’s alright, Natick,” Twyla said. “You’re dismissed.”

“Aye, ma’am.”