The Military Academy changes its handbook with 'outdated and sexist views on women'. Again.

Particularly for men: Always wear a belt with trousers and tuck in your shirt.

Particularly for women: Allow your imagination to run wild!

This was the advice given in a manual when a new group of students started at the Danish Military Academy after the summer break.

The guidelines dealt with how cadets at the Danish Military Academy should dress in their free time, when their uniform was hung up in the closet.

However, these and other passages have been removed, after the Danish Military Academy updated the manual. Again.

The manual was otherwise revised just before the summer break and printed in a physical copy, which all new cadets received at the beginning of the academic year. But now, the Danish Military Academy has revised it - for the second time in a year.

The advice on how to dress in one's leisure time has been changed, and now it states:

"If you wish to appear presentable and respectable in most situations, you can dress a little more conservatively than you normally would."

The change was made after DR News contacted the Danish Military Academy and inquired about the manual.

School Principal Colonel Thor Hilton: I had already updated the manual once in the year. The new version was released in June with you as the sender, so why are you changing it again in November?

- I read the manual again after your inquiry, and I also spoke with the cadets. I noticed some formulations that were not in line with what I, as the school principal, want to convey.

- The formulations were not gender-neutral, which we work a lot with in the military.

Why did the Danish Military Academy change the cadet manual:

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'Sexist and outdated female perspective'

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The earlier formulations in the manual have been criticized by both the Women Veterans Association and Kvinfo, who have called them "sexist" and an expression of "outdated female perspective."

The passage about women "letting go" and allowing their imagination to run wild has also been criticized by both parties.

- I interpret it as women being told to cover up and not go out in daring clothing. If women want to be taken seriously, they should take more clothes off, says Karen Phillipa Larsen, chairwoman of the Women Veterans Association.

School Principal Thor Hilton, how did you interpret the turnaround that one should "let go" and allow their imagination to run wild when you published it in June?

- I was thinking about what you wear. It's important to send a proper signal when you're an officer, and therefore it's important how you dress. If you come in sloppily dressed or in hanging trousers, where the backside sticks out, it sends the wrong signal.

Kvinfo, Women Veterans, all political parties, and a rhetorician believe that the change can only be interpreted as the school leadership telling female cadets not to dress provocatively. What do you say to that interpretation?

- I acknowledge that the turnaround is an expression of an outdated way of thinking, and it surprises me that such a passage made it through my own reading when I first published the manual.

There are many passages that have been rewritten and changed, why are there so many that made it through your first reading?

- The chapter on etiquette and tone was intended to be the more relaxed chapter, as it was advice and therefore up to the individual to follow. But the approach has shown itself to be too lax, and it has been tightened up.

- It has also been tightened up in light of the discussions we have had about bullying in the military.

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A saber swipe in the back is a thing of the past

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Both the new and old versions of the manual describe a series of traditions at wedding parties. But one tradition has been dropped. It described how guests formed a bridge with their sabers, called an espalier, that the bride and groom passed under.

"At some regiments, the leader may choose to give the bride an elegant and friendly swipe with the saber on her backside as she passes, after which the saber is returned."

According to the director of Kvinfo, Henriette Laursen, a swipe in the backside is at odds with the law.

- If the bride perceives this swipe as offensive, it would be against the equal treatment law. Therefore, it's good that the Danish Military Academy has removed this passage, where they directly encourage such an action.

School Principal Thor Hilton, what do you think about having issued a manual that encourages something that could be illegal?

- It's a mistake. In the military, we have worked a lot on addressing bullying. Therefore, it's deeply unfortunate that such a passage was included, where one could potentially cross the line.

If you hadn't received a request from the press, would you have changed the manual?

- It's an impossible question to answer, but I hope so. In my conversations with cadets, I receive a lot of input, so I hope that I was made aware of some of these passages.

Did you change the manual because you sincerely believed that these passages were problematic, or because gender neutrality is "in"?

- As the school principal, I have a desire for my cadets to be seen as future officers, not as women or men. I will judge them as people, not by their gender.

The military is an institution rich in traditions, can you understand that there will be some who are afraid that traditions will be eradicated when you change the cadet manual?

- Yes. It will always be a balancing act between traditions and trends in society. It's important to hold on to traditions to create a special sense of belonging to the school and the military in general.

- But I don't think we should be afraid to change traditions about clothing or the cadet ball.

Warning: This article was translated by a Large Language Model, in case of doubt, you can always visit the original source.