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When my brother served in the Marine Corps, he belonged to a tight-knit elite unit. Some best time of his life.
From what I know, combat units are not so obsessed with race. Growing up with Marines, I heard all types of racial and gender or sexual jokes will make sailors blush, I don't think these people really mean anything bad.
Integrating women into combat unit is not a good idea, in my opinion. If you had an entitled or victim mentality, don't join the military, If you were too sensitive, don't join, life would be too miserable for you
I've heard that said that Marines are 1 color: "green". Not "white", not "Black", not "Asian" and so on.
I've heard that said that Marines are 1 color: "green". Not "white", not "Black", not "Asian" and so on.
Late into the night of our first day of Basic training in 1973--actually a couple of hours into the second day--our instructor pulled us into a group for som final instructions before putting us to bed.
He was a short man, about five-five, but very broad at the shoulders and clearly muscular even in fatigues. Sergeant Jimmy Weeks from some little town in South Carolina, with a thick Southern accent spat from the side of his mouth.
He told us this at the end of that first long day: "One thing we ain't gonna have in this flight. We ain't gonna have no racial troubles. The reason we ain't gonna have no racial troubles is because you ain't got no reason to have no racial troubles. The reason you ain't got no reason to have no racial trouble is because you're all the same color...namely green. You all got the same hair...namely none. You all got the same daddy...namely me. And you all got the same wants and desires...namely to get the #$@#$% out of here!"
"One thing we ain't gonna have in this flight. We ain't gonna have no racial troubles. The reason we ain't gonna have no racial troubles is because you ain't got no reason to have no racial troubles. The reason you ain't got no reason to have no racial trouble is because you're all the same color...namely green. You all got the same hair...namely none. You all got the same daddy...namely me. And you all got the same wants and desires...namely to get the #$@#$% out of here!"
So many problems can be solved by application of drill sergeants.
When my old infantry unit was assigned a female NCO, our platoon sergeant (SGT Thorsen - "Thorsen" means "son of Thor", and he looked the part - 6' 4" of red-haired, red-bearded Viking) told us in plain terms that an NCO was an NCO, no matter the plumbing. This would extend to all matters of command, respect and even modesty - and that anyone having problems in that regard could complain in a letter home, because our mothers might care, nobody else did. Anyone causing problems, on the other hand, would receive plenty of attention. And wouldn't like it.
So many problems can be solved by application of drill sergeants.
When my old infantry unit was assigned a female NCO, our platoon sergeant (SGT Thorsen - "Thorsen" means "son of Thor", and he looked the part - 6' 4" of red-haired, red-bearded Viking) told us in plain terms that an NCO was an NCO, no matter the plumbing. This would extend to all matters of command, respect and even modesty - and that anyone having problems in that regard could complain in a letter home, because our mothers might care, nobody else did. Anyone causing problems, on the other hand, would receive plenty of attention. And wouldn't like it.
There were no problems.
I'm just guessing those troops had a fear of Thorsen. Attitude being "what problems one had with those of another race, leave them at the door".
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