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Army diversity poster girl abused by fellow soldiers on social media

Army Corporal Kerry-Ann Morris endured abuse from fellow soldiers after she featured in a recruitment campaign
Army Corporal Kerry-Ann Morris endured abuse from fellow soldiers after she featured in a recruitment campaign

An army poster girl was abused by fellow soldiers on social media, it has emerged after the Ministry of Defence confirmed six soldiers had been disciplined for it.

The group of British troops based in Germany have been given formal warnings after posting racist remarks about Kerry-Ann Morris, the face of British Army Equality and Diversity campaigns.

The six soldiers from 159 (Colenso) Battery accused Cpl Morris of using her skin color to secure promotions and 'playing the race card' at work to sabotage her colleagues' careers.

Comments were also made about Cpl Morris accusing others of being prejudiced against her because she is black, the Mail on Sunday reported.

Cpl Morris, from Nottingham, recently appeared in the 'Your Army Needs You' millennial recruitment campaign, which launched last month, and when the picture was circulated on Facebook, the group of soldiers based on Gutersloh posted a series of racist comments. 

The comments reportedly received multiple 'likes' and the post was shared among other soldiers.

Cpl Morris, of Jamaican descent, is said to have brought it to the attention of the Army's Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Network - a group set up in 2017 for ethnic minority soldiers, of which Cpl Morris is a leading promoter.

Cpl Morris, from Nottingham, recently appeared in the 'Your Army Needs You' millennial recruitment campaign
Cpl Morris, from Nottingham, recently appeared in the 'Your Army Needs You' millennial recruitment campaign

A defence source told the newspaper that the soldiers who wrote and 'liked' the comments were interviewed by senior officers. They said: "Cpl Morris a high achiever and it appears some of her colleagues are looking for excuses as to why they're not doing as well as her. They know they will be in very serious trouble if they ever repeat such offensive accusations which breached the Army's values and standards policy.

"It was to Cpl Morris's credit that she requested the soldiers should be dealt with lightly on this occasion. As the victim, she could have pressed for more severe sanctions to be imposed but she was adamant that should not happen."

An Army investigation concluded that the messages were racially abusive. The group faced being kicked out of the Army, but Cpl Morris reportedly intervened to persuade senior officers against severe punishment.

Cpl Morris joined the Army in 2011 and has been promoted twice - she recently transferred from the Royal Artillery to the Adjutant General's Corps. She has represented the Army and Combined Services at athletics and has appeared on the cover of the Army lifestyle magazine The Locker.

The latest recruitment drive that Cpl Morris features in was designed to focus on "how the Army sees beyond stereotypes to spot young people's potential", the Ministry of Defence (MOD) said. 

The soldier has also featured on the cover of Locker magazine
The soldier has also featured on the cover of Locker magazine

The Armed Forces has made other moves to address a deepening recruitment crisis, including allowing foreign nationals to join the Armed Forces without having ever lived in Britain - in the first quarter of 2018 only seven per cent of the required number of soldiers had been recruited.

The campaign launched last month has reportedly led to a rise in the number of applications to join the Armed Forces.

The MOD has also set a target of 10 per cent being from BAME backgrounds by 2020, with just 2.4 per cent of personnel currently being from BAME communities.

For ranks below officer, 8.7 per cent of all armed forces personnel were from ethnic minorities, but the MOD says the Army had the highest percentage of people from ethnic minorities working both as officers and in other ranks, compared with the other armed forces.

The group of British troops based in Germany have been given formal warnings after posting racist remarks about Kerry-Ann Morris, pictured
The group of British troops based in Germany have been given formal warnings after posting racist remarks about Kerry-Ann Morris, pictured

An MOD spokesman said: “Discrimination and bullying have no place in the Armed Forces and will not be tolerated. All allegations are taken very seriously and are thoroughly investigated. Anyone found to have fallen short of our high standards can expect disciplinary action to be taken.”

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