Drummer Erling Harris (19) wants to join Guards Music, but hearing loss means the armed forces say no.

Erling Harris (19) has long wanted to join the Guard Music, which is part of the armed forces.

– I already wanted to be part of the musical guard after three months in the school orchestra. I became even more confident about it when I was studying music in high school, he says.

The band is the only conscription-based band in Norway and consists exclusively of soldiers doing their first service.

But the Defense says no.

He was born with a hearing impairment, which means he uses hearing aids. The defense believes Harris does not qualify for a hearing in Garden.

– I never personally felt that hearing was a problem, and those around me never felt that there was a problem.

– My high school teacher didn’t even know I had a hearing loss until another friend told him about it, says the 19-year-old.

Read on to see what the armed forces are reacting to.

I did not take a hearing test

It all started last November. Then the 19-year-old was in session. He passed all the tests, but when the armed forces saw that he was wearing hearing aids, he couldn’t be accepted, according to Harris.

He never had the opportunity to take a hearing test in session, with or without a hearing aid.

– And what I feel is discriminatory is that I was allowed to take a sight test, but not a hearing test, he says.

– I find it unfair not to be able to show how
I hear with a hearing aid. People with low vision can also have an eye exam with glasses, he says.

Later, he received a letter in the mail informing him that he was not allowed to be part of the Garden’s music troupe.

The reason for this was that the use of hearing aids is not compatible with the service in a music group. They also say they fear Harris’ hearing will be further impaired while serving in the Guards Band.

He finds it difficult to understand.

– I passed the session, apart from this particular thing with the audition, says Harris, who has played loud music all his life.

Today, he fights for change in the armed forces, both for himself and for those facing similar issues.

– I feel like me and the others are just being treated a bit unfairly.

Have several in the team

The 19-year-old is not alone in believing he and others are being treated unfairly by the armed forces.

The Equality and Discrimination Ombud (LDO) has contacted the Norwegian Defense Forces to request a meeting.

In a letter seen by VG, they remind the Armed Forces of the Equality and Discrimination Act, which the Armed Forces are also required to follow.

Among other things, it is forbidden to discriminate on the basis of disability.

– What we doubt is that it seems that you do not get an individual and concrete evaluation of your function, says Guri Gabrielsen, thematic director at LDO.

– It may seem that they are doing an assessment only related to the diagnosis, she says.

– It is also necessary to make evaluations in relation to a specific position or service, she adds.

According to them, it seems that the Armed Forces believe that if you have a hearing loss, which means you need a hearing aid, it immediately means that you have no place in the Armed Forces.

This is whether or not you are performing well and whichever service or position in the armed forces you are applying for.

– Although facilitation does not seem necessary in this case, we would like to add that the Norwegian Armed Forces may also have a duty to facilitate persons with functional impairments as long as the facilitation is not disproportionate, says the specialist director .

Now they have had a meeting with the Defence. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the situation and ask questions about how the Armed Forces understand and practice their responsibility not to discriminate on the basis of disability.

Follow the house rules

VG addressed a number of specific questions to the Defense. They say they cannot address individual cases and therefore respond generally.

– The Norwegian Armed Forces imposes various requirements on all personnel called up for service, based on the Norwegian Defense Act and conscription rules, says Vegard Norstad Finberg, Norwegian Armed Forces press officer.

Also, the Norwegian Armed Forces informs that anyone who is going to serve must attend a seance.

– Those who do not meet the minimum health requirements of the Armed Forces are not fit for service and are not called up for initial service. Nor are they evaluated as candidates for education or voluntary service in the armed forces, says Finberg.

In addition, the Norwegian Armed Forces state that they allow certain medical aids, for example glasses, but that a limit has been set for the aids they can authorize.

– This is further regulated in the house rules, says Finberg.

I have heard of several similar situations

The Hørselshemmedes Landsforbund (HLF) has received several inquiries regarding the practices of the Norwegian Armed Forces. They think Harris is entitled to a place in the garden.

– We believe that the armed forces are setting up a discriminatory practice here against the hearing impaired. You must be assessed individually and according to your qualifications. Erling meets the relevant criteria and he has hearing that works well with hearing aids, says HLF leader Inger Helene Venås.

Plan B, hoping to achieve plan A

Erling Harris (19) has now started Folkehøyskole. It became plan B, because plan A didn’t go as planned.

He hopes he complained about the armed forces’ response and hopes they can change the decision.

– I’m still hoping for a plan A, he said.