Air Force Has 'Zero Tolerance' for Words 'Boy' and 'Girl,' Senior Officer Says
The United States Air Force has a "zero tolerance" policy when it comes to the use of the terms "boy" an "girl," an email sent out to airmen at Joint Base San Antonio suggests.
Fox News columnist Todd Starnes obtained a copy of the email that was sent out by a senior Air Force officer at Lackland Air Force Base, which he claims is an indication that "the military is still infected with Obama-era political correctness."
The email highlights a number of words and terms that are deemed to be unacceptable to use on base.
According to Starnes, the list includes some phrases that could obviously be viewed as offensive. However, the list also includes the words "boy" and "girl."
Some of the terms included on the list:
1. Boy
2. Girl
3. You People
4. Colonial
5. Blacklist
6. Blackmail
7. Blackball
8. Sounds Greek to me
9. Blondes have more fun
10. Too many chiefs, not enough Indians
"Please be cognizant that such conduct is 100 percent zero tolerance in or outside of the work climate," the email states. "Let's capitalize on our richly diverse climate, and help others seek assistance if they are struggling with compliance."
Despite the email, the public affairs office at the Air Force base said in a statement to Fox News that the Air Force does not have an official list of banned terms in the workplace.
"The Air Force has no list of prohibited terms," the statement reads. "[The email] was sent out by an individual simply reminding Airmen to be respectful to others."
The reported email comes as the Obama administration lifted a ban on transgender Americans serving in the military last year. The Pentagon later issued guidelines which explained that transgender service members must undergo a sex change transition to be officially recognized by their "preferred gender" in the military.
In September, the U.S. Navy announced that it was going to require all of its sailors to go through special training on the new transgender policies.
"It's a good thing America isn't fighting a war on political correctness, because our military would be losing. After eight years of President Obama, some habits are tough to break — including over-the-top 'sensitivity' training," leading social conservative activist and president of the Family Research Council, Tony Perkins, wrote in a blog post Thursday. "At the Lackland Air Force Base, the lingering effects of the last commander-in-chief are still being felt in overreaching policies and memos like the one Fox News' Todd Starnes exposed today."
Perkins, a Marine, pointed out that the email seems to suggest that in the military, the acknowledgement of the "biological reality" of a person's gender has somehow become "offensive."
"Have we come so far that simply uttering a person's sex is cause for chastisement?" Perkins asked.
"Unfortunately, this is just another example of the kind of mess left behind by the Obama administration. And while no one can undo eight years of anti-faith, anti-American P.C. overnight, the Trump team has its work cut out for it in a military decimated by 'suggestions' like this one," Perkins continued. "As FRC's Lt. General Jerry Boykin has said, it's no wonder the troop morale is in the gender-free toilet."