The Pentagon will review its policies on hairstyles following backlash from African-American soldiers , who said the Army 's revised rules are racially and culturally biased . Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has notified Congress that he has directed his deputy to `` work with the service secretaries and the military chiefs to review their respective policies , to address the issues raised by members of Congress about grooming standards , particularly for African-American females , '' Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said this week . Over the next month , the military will take a close look at the `` the definitions of authorized and prohibited hairstyles contained in each of their respective policies and revise any offensive language , '' Kirby said . `` During the next three months , each service will review their hairstyle policies as they pertain to African-American women to ensure standards are fair and respectful of our diverse force , while also meeting our military service 's requirements , '' he said . Hagel will tweak Pentagon policies accordingly after the reviews are completed , Kirby added . The latest twist in the hairstyle saga follows an uproar over the Army 's new grooming guidelines . Those rules require such things as hair `` must be of uniform dimension , small in diameter ( approximately Â¼ inch ) , show no more than 1/8 ( inch ) of the scalp between the braids . '' Current Army rules ban dreadlocks and twists of any kind as well as styles it views as `` unkempt '' or `` matted . '' That type of language rankled African-American soldiers , their supporters and the female members of the Congressional Black Caucus , who said the guidelines force African-American women with `` natural '' hair textures â€ ” those unaltered by heat or chemicals â€ ” to either cut or straighten their roots in order to conform to the Army 's rules and mainstream cultural standards . One African-American female soldier started an online White House petition , which received more than 13,000 signatures and is no longer on the website . The Army 's rules also touched on centuries old cultural identity politics that have been a sensitive issue for the black community since slavery . During that time , and for the generations that followed , straighter hair texture and lighter skin complexion was used to classify which slaves were more valuable and seen as more attractive , African-American scholars noted . Those values , once internalized , damaged self-esteem and were perpetuated within the black community for years , those experts said . The Army had previously rejected criticism of its policies as discriminatory since African-American women helped craft the new regulations . Those guidelines regulate the style of hair parts , braid width and hair thickness . The female members of the Congressional Black Caucus also wrote Hagel earlier this month criticizing the Army 's new guidelines as `` discriminatory rules targeting soldiers who are women of color with little regard to what is needed to maintain their natural hair . '' Those who objected to the regulations applauded Hagel 's intervention . `` Members of the CBC appreciate Secretary Hagel for his prompt response to our letter and for seriously considering our concerns , '' chairwoman Rep . Chair Marcia Fudge , an Ohio Democrat , said in a written statement . `` The secretary 's response affirms his commitment to ensuring all individuals are welcomed and can continue to be proud of serving within our armed forces . ''
Pentagon is set to review policies on grooming after complaints of racially discriminatory rules . The reviews will be completed over the next three months . African-American soldiers and lawmakers applauded the Pentagon 's decision to review rules . But some black service members said they were concerned about how it would affect their chances for promotion in a military that has historically been more open to hiring minorities than other branches.