Share This:
The units that make up America’s Special Operations community are now spread across all four branches and include upwards of approximately 80,000 personnel. Many are support and staff positions, but when we talk about the “tribes” of Special Operations we are really just referencing actual SOF-qualified troops, those who have been through RASP, BUD/S, SFAS, A&S, the “Advanced Land Navigation course” and so forth. In other words, the ground guys who actually conduct operations.
Each unit has its own distinct culture, identity, and accoutrements such as insignia, berets, and badges, but also unofficial symbols and names which appear on team t-shirts, unofficial velcro patches, ballcaps, challenge coins, and the like. In the past, there was a common joke that each SOF unit had its own specific haircut – Rangers with their high-and-tights, Green Berets had mustaches, and SEALs, of course, had their Hollywood long hair. The members of each unit have common experiences from their combat and training deployments as well as their initial selection and training, all of which contribute to that unit’s individual identity.