Sikh-American Officer In US Marines Allowed To Wear Turban With Limitations May Sue Corps: Report

The officer First Lieutenant Sukhbir Toor, though, plans to sue the Corps if he is not granted full religious accommodation, according to a media report.

A US Marine from MRF-D participates in an Urban assault as part of Exercise 'Talisman Sabre 21' on July 27, 2021, in Townsville, Australia. | Getty

New York: A Sikh-American officer in the United States Marine Corps has been permitted to wear the turban when on duty but with a few limitations.

The officer First Lieutenant Sukhbir Toor, though, plans to sue the Corps if he is not granted full religious accommodation, according to a media report.

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“Almost every morning for five years, First Lieutenant Sukhbir Toor has pulled on the uniform of the United States Marine Corps. On Thursday, he also got to put on the turban of a faithful Sikh,” The New York Times said in a report.

First Lieutenant Toor is the first man in the 246-year history of the Marine Corps to partially be allowed to wear a turban.

“I finally don't have to pick which life I want to commit to, my faith or my country. I can be who I am and honour both sides,” First Lieutenant Toor said in an interview.

First Lieutenant Toor, the son of Indian immigrants, decided to appeal when he was promoted as the Captain this spring.

The New York Times said First Lieutenant Toor’s case is the latest in a long-running conflict between two fundamental values in the United States military: “the tradition of discipline and uniformity, and the constitutional liberties the armed forces were created to defend”.

The 26-year-old Sikh-American officer, who grew up in Washington and Ohio, has been allowed to wear the Turban while on duty with limitations.

He “can wear a turban in daily dress at normal duty stations, but not while deployed to a conflict zone, or when in dress uniform in a ceremonial unit, where the public could see it”.

The New York Times report said First Lieutenant Toor, who has appealed the restrictive decision to the Marine Corps commandant, says he will sue the Corps if he does not get a full accommodation.

“We’ve come a long way, but there is still more to go,” the officer said in the New York Times report.

“The Marine Corps needs to show it really means what it has been saying about strength in diversity - that it doesn't matter what you look like, it just matters that you can do your job,” he added.

The Corps has maintained that “uniformity was as essential to a fighting force as well-oiled rifles”.

“In order to build squads that will move forward in a combat environment where people are dying, a strong team bond is required,” Colonel Kelly Frushour, a spokeswoman for the Marine Headquarters, said in written responses to The New York Times on this case.

“Uniformity is one of the tools the Corps uses to forge that bond. What the Corps is protecting is its ability to win on the battlefield, so that the Constitution can remain the law of the land,” she added.

“Knowing he would at least initially have to forgo the physical symbols of his faith”, First Lieutenant Toor had joined the US Marines after college earlier in 2017 as he was willing to make the sacrifice, the report said.

“I felt there was a debt to be paid. My family came to this country seeking the American dream, and we got it,” he said in the report.