Shaved heads in basic training; is this mandatory? If it is, then why and why only for males?

Sigh.

If one of my soldiers ever initiated this conversation I would make the leadership decision that idle time has led to an idle mind and find them something to do.

Dam I hate it when this phone changes my words and thinks it is smarter than I sm! In the post below "silver" should be "sulphur" , "NIW" should be "Now" and a bunch of other craps this phone put in!#

The shaved heads are done to ensure no headlicecor other critters came with you to Basic Training. It was started before females were allowed in the Army and has just never been looked at since. NIW you can make all recruits wash their hair with silver or some other critter killer to have the same effect. I would say if males were forced to shave heads so should females. You cannot pick and choose what parts of "equal treatment" you want - it must be all or nothing.

Ok so first off, the shaved heads for males are a means of taking away individuality which most ppl express thru clothes and hairstyle both of which are removed and made uniform. The purpose at least for the Corps when I went thru was to break down entirely your sense of self as an individual. For the females, they are required to have hair that, if left down doe not touch the shoulder or must be able to be put up in a bun of some type and not interfere with the wearing of a cover. The reasons why females do not have shaved heads i believe goes back to the simple fact that women don't keep their hair close cropped as men do. Its an empathetic consideration in my opinion to female specific needs and preferences while not impacting ideas of equality. Females also tend to find more time for hygiene like at Marine recruit training, each evening we wwre given 1 hour of "SDI time" to write home, organize our stuff and socialize with other platoon members. Males do not put as much attention into hygiene as females and i believe studies or polls were taken that showed females used this time much more often for additional personal hygeine. This fights against stuff like lice from a sanitary standpoint while males its easier to shave heads to combat this possible issue.
Other respects are considered as well. At the end of recruit training we were allowed to get a high and tight, which makes having a LITTLE bit of that individuality back as a reward while still remaining part of the team.

First, it is not "shaving" off of hair. Your hair is cut down to peach fuzz length. Fine stubble that still indicates you have hair. Its entertaining is to create "equality but to also help identify any medical issues like lice. Females in the military want equality, so let them get the same hair cut in basic training. Then follow the standards as men.

Hair grows back young troop and if you want to look at it this way. Females have a heck of a harder time than male troops, they have standards as well. There hair has to be up all the time. All you have to do is roll out of the rack. If your crying about this now what else are you going to cry about? Then go ahead and get out, real troops don’t need someone who cry’s about everything under the sun, you won’t be trusted by your peers. That’s a fact.
US Army 1st Sgt. Retired

It is for transition from civilian to Soldier. Also hygiene requirements. As for the female thing yes I believe all genders should have to shave their heads minus religious exception. Not religious myself but we have agreed as a country to have a separation between government and religion.

It should be universal from a hygiene standpoint. Folks are coming from the civilian world and will be in close contact with fellow troops. I can’t tell you how many times I had to treat critters on troops!!

When I enlisted in 1962, we were told that ir was to make sure we were not smuggling in head lice.

Both males and females should have their heads shaved if any at all.