We are live and on location at the historic West Point Military Academy today, bringing you a story about the superintendent’s proposed changes to the words to the military academy’s alma mater and it’s beloved companion piece, “The Corps.” If you’ve ever been to a football game here, or at a graduation event, you know the songs well. They are as historic as the academy itself, and stand for age old tradition here, but there is something missing … any references to women. The alma mater, and “The Corps” have words like “men” and “sons” all through them.

Women were admitted into West Point’s elite officer-training program in 1976, and more than 3,000 have since graduated to serve as Army officers. The words in the two songs struck Lt. Gen. Franklin “Buster” Hagenbeck before he was the superintendent, while he was at a ceremony commemorating the 30th anniversary of admitting women to West Point two years ago. Women in the academy were singing “We sons of today … we salute you.” “It just seemed out of step”, Hagenbech said, and has been discussing the changes with alumni, Army brass, and the cadets. Hagenbech wants to change the words with more gender neutral synonyms. “The men”, would become, “The ranks”, and “We sons”, would become “The Corps.”

done

Here’s the catch, some of the women cadets, don’t necessarily want the change, because they reportedly don’t want to come off as “whiners”. The academy’s Board of Visitors, made up of presidential appointees and members of Congress voted unanimously to back whatever decision Hagenbeck makes.

Today begins graduation events, and today’s action is called “The Alumni Review.” The alma mater has been sung already, in the original, and current form, which i filmed for you so listen in … the proposed changes could be approved as early as June, but for now, the song remains the same (as Led Zep would sing…)

I’ll be sending in more pictures and updates as we go throughout the day. I’m curious to hear what the people attending today’s ceremony have to say about all this…