Ode to the beard. The year was 2003. I was in command of the USS Oscar Austin (DDG-79), participating in Operation Iraqi Freedom as U.S. forces entered Iraq in search of Saddam Hussein. It was a proud moment for the ship, the strike group, and the Navy, all well documented with camera crews on board the ships capturing stories from the sailors involved in this once-in-a-generation event.
Then, something awful happened. A lieutenant on board a navy ship gave an interview on CNN—with a full beard. The ship name on his ball cap was blurred out to avoid attribution (or retribution—a security concern), but he was extolling the accomplishments of his crew, of which he was immensely proud. But this message was eclipsed when, apparently, the Chief of Naval Operations saw the clip and asked if the service had reinstated beards in the Navy. It had not (at least not officially), but I can now confess (assuming that the statute of limitations has expired) that many of leaders had allowed beard-growing contests as part of the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation program—we all thought we would be at sea for a long time and the contests were both popular and lucrative. For $10, male sailors could purchase a “no-shave chit” and female sailors a “ponytail chit,” with the money going toward a cookout in a future port visit. Then came an email from Headquarters: “Never in my life have I been SO PROFESSIONALLY EMBARRASSED” the note read, “and I want the name and ship of this officer NOW!” The search for the “bearded lieutenant” was on. On board the Oscar Austin, the razors and scissors came out and the contest ended—and we all held our breath. Forget the war; this was SERIOUS!
I admit that I cannot remember how the story ended, but on the Cruiser that I would eventually command ten years later (which I cannot confirm or deny was the one with the Bearded Lieutenant!), I allowed myself to be talked into a beard contest—but only during independent ops for a long stretch, and only for 45 days. We would have gotten away with it, but for a Canadian film crew on board the supply ship from which we took fuel, putting their cameras about 75 feet from my bearded face on the bridge (thanks, CSPAN!). Fortunately, I once again escaped with a “career near-miss” and (to my knowledge) suffered no damage for this transgression. I will report that on a 7-1/2 month cruise it was probably the single biggest morale booster I can recall from my own seven deployments! I also kind of enjoyed not shaving for a month. The event ended with a “best beard” and “best ponytail” contest which was both entertaining and a fitting denouement to the project, with all hands clean shaven the next morning before we pulled into the first port in over 90 days. I later found out that I was supposed to get permission, and decided not to bring it up and ask for forgiveness (apparently the Strike Group Commander didn’t watch CSPAN!). In the end we made some money, met every mission, captured some pirates, and had no issues.
So what is the point? I was in Nuclear Power School in 1985 when the Navy changed its policy on beards, citing safety at sea for firefighting teams, but as a new ensign I had no say in the matter. Besides, my attempt at facial hair had always ended in scraggly disaster so it was not a big deal. The issue came up and died down a few times over the years, as the Navy toyed with the idea of allowing facial hair, but never the trigger. When Vice Admiral John Nowell took over as the Chief of Naval Personnel, the issue came up at an all-hands call and has percolated ever since—about three years now—with occasional coverage in the press. Early in his tenure, CNO Admiral Michael M. Gilday restricted beards even further by halting waivers, known in the Navy as “no-shave chits.” Some sailors sought the waivers because of razor bumps that occur when beard hair curls back into the skin after shaving. “Some have argued that I moved too fast with that decision and that some were disadvantaged by it, he said in a Washington Times article.
Since that time, the Navy has seen several other uniform changes, including the famed SWO leather Jacket, but the beard policy is still under review. A 2020 Navy Safety Center message states that:
The naval safety center recommendation to maintain current facial hair policy was made based on a review of 13 face seal references originally conducted in 2016 and an additional seven references citing the requirement for a smooth face researched last month. This was also supplemented by phone calls with other services and respirator manufacturers. There was no dissension. All agree that facial hair impairs the ability of the respirator to perform as intended and poses a high risk to users who are often in a life and death situation when they need these devices.
Naval Safety Center records show only one event, 26 years ago, in which a beard played a role in a mishap—and this was a civilian with a full beard. However, given recent focus on firefighting and the potential of increased need for Mission Oriented Protective Posture (MOPP) gear in a near-peer competition, beards on sea duty may simply be a bridge too far. But….
The Elephant in the Room
There is a second facet of this discussion that is very personal for a small group of sailors who suffer from pseudofolliculitis barbae (razor bumps, or PFB)—a common condition of the beard area occurring in up to 60 percent African American men and other people with curly hair. The problem results when highly curved hairs grow back into the skin causing inflammation and a foreign body reaction. Over time, this can cause keloidal scarring, which looks like hard bumps of the beard area and neck. Shaving sharpens the ends of the hairs like a spear. The hairs then curve back into the skin causing PFB. A 100-percent effective treatment is to let the beard grow. Once the hairs get to be a certain length they will not grow back into the skin. For most cases, totally avoiding shaving for three to four weeks, until all lesions have subsided, while applying a mild prescription cortisone cream to the involved skin each morning, can effectively treat most cases PFB.
Pseudofolliculitis barbae. Credit: U.S. Army
Unfortunately, I must admit, despite several leadership tours (including twice in command), I was woefully uninformed as to the severity of PFB, and I suspect more than one black service member has been subjected to (ignorant) backlash, direct or indirect, of a legitimate no-shave chit. This type of feedback has led to a potential revisit of the current policy ; as one former black naval officer shared with me after proofreading this article: “I suffered everything from irritation to backlash. Turned down a flag aide job for this reason—could not shave every day. My father’s face was a scarred mess from this (he was a retired Navy bos’n mate). Lots of talent is lost to this policy in my view.” He shared that not shaving allows the hairs to become long enough to pull out by combing and cease the irritation (that of the hairs, not of his shipmates!).
The Navy Personnel instruction 1000.22C on the topic contains this statement seems tone deaf, considering who really gets PFB:
Actively seeking and participating in prescribed medical treatments represents an individual’s professional commitment to themselves, command readiness and the Navy. Anyone with thick, curly facial hair may be susceptible to PFB.
It also contains the following statement to be signed by the patient:
You are hereby being counseled regarding your medical condition. You were diagnosed with Pseudo folliculitis Barbae (PFB), a condition if left untreated will degrade your personal readiness and safety. This degradation is a risk to the mission, your personal safety and the safety of others that depend upon you.
So I ask: Is it appropriate to tie a lifetime medical condition to “a degradation” of standards” as implied by the term “professional commitment?” I will leave that answer to the reader.
A third exception to the no-beard policy is for religious reasons: Effective 22 January 2014, the U.S. military expanded its policies on religious accommodation and now allows all officer and enlisted personnel to request permission to wear beards and articles of clothing for religious reasons. BUPERS Notice 1730.11A encourages accommodation, but does allow commanding officers to deny beards if deemed to be a safety issue. For sea duty this makes sense.
But, what about on shore duty? About 60 percent of Navy personnel work in offices or positions in which their response to a fire would be to run out of the building and call the fire department. Since there is no real reason that a beard “verbot” should apply to them, the safety aspect seems thin as a universal policy. As for sea duty, I could not find no documented cases of injury or even issues reported because of beards, despite a large number of fires both during and outside of bearded—and beardless—policy periods.
Grooming Policies and Exceptions
So, what is really going on here? A perception that beards look unprofessional? Or possibly implicit bias or a hint of discrimination? It could be all or none of the above, however, a recent Military Medicine study with more than 10,000 respondents found “an association between shaving waivers and delayed promotions. The majority of the waiver group was Black/African-American, which may lead to a racially discriminatory effect of the male grooming standards of the USAF.” This may mean the best solution may not be to allow beards only for individuals granted a waiver, but to allow them for everyone who desires one.
The Navy used to allow service members to wear beards—they were common. It might be worth exploring the reasoning/logic for allowing them (hint: read Admiral Zumwalt’s Z-gram 57!) and the 1984 reasoning used to outlaw beards. As the Navy and the nation wrestle with being more diverse, equitable, and inclusive, I believe it will not be long before beards are allowed on shore duty. Imagine if today you were to line up a few sailors who have an approved religious accommodation (RA) to have a beard. or those sailors, and those with PFB, beards are authorized—they are professional, respected members of the team. Next to them is a sailor without an approved RA—how does the Navy look that sailor in the eye and say that a beard for him is unprofessional?
To further illustrate the point, it took a few decades but now the ponytail hairstyle is authorized and professional. And then there is the “warrior toughness” aspect, as demonstrated by my SEAL friends. A recent Proceedings article gave a very different reason for beards to be allowed, stating that “bringing beards back would be additional protection for our troops after they leave the base. Blending in with the rest of society would reduce their chances of being singled out by groups such as ISIL or even drive-by shooters based solely on appearance.”
Credit: U.S. Naval Institute Photo Archive
To Beard, or Not to Beard
At sea, where every sailor is a trained member of the fire party and fitted for a gas mask, clean shaven (where medically feasible) is the beard policy exists for the right reasons—for now. There is, however, precedent for this change in policy in the public sector: Four New York firefighters were reinstated after being placed on light duty, and then fired for not shaving because of PFB. Perhaps there is room for redress of the policy for sailors at sea—at least for those with PFB—with sufficient testing using current firefighting equipment. In the end, a true evidence-based look may not fully support the current ban on sea duty, and, as noted Is, pretty much “not applicable” for shore based personnel.
Why change it now? How many more personnel would base a decision to “stay Navy” on this change in policy? What signal would it send in this introspective time as we look at the idea of discrimination? How badly does the Navy need sailors? Although some would scoff at the idea that this matters, sometimes it doesn’t take much. Worth a try? I think so. What if the Navy tried the following:
- Allow those on shore duty to grow short, professionally trimmed beards. This is also a nod to the current telework situation in which sailors may work from home for extended periods anyway. I suspect a few of them grew beards, but they probably turned off the Zoom camera.
- Allow no-shave chits for all sea-duty sailors with a medical diagnosis of PFB. Consider not assigning those suffering from this condition to a primary fire team, as the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) recommends (look at the actual impact or conduct more frequent fit testing).
- Investigate newer technology; new shaving systems for sensitive skin are available as a potential medical solution (and a funded prescription) for those affected by PFB.
- Create a short video to assist leaders in understanding the effect of PFB and include it in leadership pipeline training.
- Defer a decision beards for sea-duty sailors to a post-COVID time when the Navy can test the safety of Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) on personnel with short, trimmed beards.
A final note: A retired fleet master chief provided a peer review and shared his Navy experience with PFB, ending with this thoughtful comment: “There must be a compassionate ear from the unimpacted for there to be a real change.” On a personal note, I have not shaved my own goatee since the day I retired, and my wife likes it—so the beard stays.
