FLASHBACK: Under Obama, Male Soldiers Were Required To Don Fake 'Woman Suits' To Better Unde
Image Credit: Seth Robson
According to a stripes.com article, the Army had ordered its hardened combat veterans to wear fake "empathy bellies" and other female parts so they could better understand how pregnant soldiers felt during physical training.
...14 non-commissioned officers at Camp Zama (Japan) took turns wearing the "pregnancy simulators" as they stretched, twisted and exercised during a three-day class that teaches them to serve as fitness instructors for pregnant soldiers and new mothers.
Army enlisted leaders all over the world are being ordered to take the Pregnancy Postpartum Physical Training Exercise Leaders Course, or PPPT, according to U.S. Army Medical Activity Japan health promotion educator Jana York.
"When they first come in, the males are typically timid and don’t feel they have the knowledge to teach female soldiers," York said. "However, after three days their confidence rises."
A helicopter crew chief sergeant who served in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo was less than enthusiastic about taking part in the activity.
Michael Braden, of Everett, Washington, said, "I didn't want to do it."
Continuing on in the Stars and Stripes article:
The 78th Aviation Battalion mechanic said he was ordered to do the training even though he doesn’t have any female soldiers in his unit and doesn’t see himself as the right sort of person to run the aerobics classes that make up a large portion of the PPPT training.
Despite his misgivings, Braden strapped on the empathy belly and spent the day learning low-impact aerobics moves like the "grapevine" and the "V-step."
