Military: Women In The Contemporary British Military

For years women have been trying to gain gender equality throughout the working world, along with in the military. Since the beginning of a uniformed military, women could not serve in military occupational specialty (MOS) positions that put them in direct combat roles. Although many women have contributed in significant ways, they have not been authorized to serve in MOS such as infantry, artillery, or armor. As the war on terrorism has developed since 9/11, women have slowly worked their way farther into the military and its many roles. This resulted in women being placed into direct combat roles. Though women have been allowed into many different roles, there is still one battle that they have yet to win and this time the majority is not backing them. Women are trying to gain access to United States Special Operations units in every branch of the military and the majority of these operators are not happy about it. While some people believe women deserve equality and the chance to do what men can do in the military, that is why women should not be

Over the past few years, there has been huge discussions when the topic of equality for women who have joined the military is being brought up. Being that gender equality is a big thing in the military now, I decided to chose this topic and discuss how I feel about it. According to the United States constitution, all men are created equal and this does not exclude women. One of the main things I learned is that equality for women in the military is a major issue. There should be no gender inequality in the United States military period. Most jobs are now open to women that were once allowed for only a man to do but when it comes to something such as the military, it should have always been that way No one should be told they can’t do something when it requires fighting for your country. Even back when men were drafted in the military, women should have been able to get drafted as well. You would think the military would take any and everybody that is willing to fight for his or her country simply because it would make our job easier as a whole. Frequently, women are stereotyped as feeble and incapable of doing certain things. Nevertheless, this should not be applied in any kind of career, particularly in the military.

Presently women are sacrificing their lives serving this country in all branches of the military in the United States. Women are more involved in combat situations since the war began in Afghanistan and Iraq. With the increase of women in the military came the increase of sexual violence. In the beginning, very few reports of sexual violence were reported; over time the number of reported cases became a huge issue that brought awareness to those that work with the President of the United States. At that moment, processes were being looked at; changes needed to be made to find ways to give confidence to victims, to feel safe enough to report the crime of sexual violence. The Department of Defense is currently working on measures to alleviate the problem. Sex crimes on women in the military can have intense effects on their mental, physical and emotional well-being. Sexual harassment and sexual assault also extends to include

I wasn’t instantly assaulted but was first harassed multiple times and so I reported the incident. The officer stated that women like me are a disgrace, ‘Joining the military to disgrace a Few Good Men’, is what he called it. I was told to woman up or ask for a transfer if I refused to look past the actions of a man just being a man. (Mercier 1)

Women have been sexually harassed and assaulted in the work force for years, and for many years, the US Army has been dealing with this enormous and overwhelming issue, through the help of their agency known as the Equal Opportunity Program (EOP). In the US Army regulation 600-20, Army Chief of Staff, General Raymond T Odierno, States the purpose, “This regulation prescribes the policies and responsibilities of command, which include the Well-being of the force, military discipline, and conduct, the Army Equal Opportunity (EO) Program, and the Army Sexual Assault Victim Program.“ For a long time, the Army’s EOP Equal Opportunity

The DND claims that recent efforts have been made to deal with harassment and improve the relations between the genders. Critics, on the hand, have made the assertion that the efforts being made are not enough to eradicate a way of thinking that has existed for decades (Pugliese, 2015). Moreover, the Canadian Armed Forces’ created Operation Honour in an attempt to ‘eliminate harmful and inappropriate sexual behaviour in the Canadian Military’ (Government of Canada, 2015). This operation was sparked by the report by Justice Deschamps which led to the government conceding that the report indicated the truthful existing of an underlying sexualized culture in the Canadian Armed Forces (hereinafter referred to as the CAF). Moreover, they stated if this issue was not publicly addressed by the CAF itself, it would create a more conducive environment to serious sexual assault (Deschamps, 2015). Furthermore, this operation stated that the conduct that has sparked public outrage is morally wrong and does not reflect the values and ethical principles of the DND and CAF (Government of Canada, 2015).

US Armed Forces is historically an organization lead by men, for men. It is comprised of about 14.5 % female and 85.5% male according to a 2011poll (CNN U.S, Jan 2014). In an organization with a rich history and legacy of obedience and restraint, it is hard to imagine the secret society of “The good ol boys”. It has been acceptable for men to “work hard, play hard”. We have all seen the movies where the men come back from overseas, invade the bars, have a good time, take a girl home, and it is acceptable behavior. What happens after they leave the bar? What happens when she says no? In November of 2013, there were 3,553 reported sexual assault cases (ABC News, 2013).

The thesis of this essay is high ranking jobs remain closed to women of the military; due to the lack of military frontline combat or the exclusion of this type of training for military women. McGregor’s main claim is that restrictions remain on women even though they are now allowed to enter frontline combat.

In the article “‘One of the Guys’: Military Women, Paradoxical Individuality, and the Transformations of the Argentine Army,” the author Máximo Badaró analyzes how the addition of women into the Argentine military has lead to institutional changes within the military. The article’s main focus is on the how the addition of female soldiers has redefined what it means to be a soldier and how this has changed the military as an institution. He also analyzes the agency available to women in the military and the role their femininity plays in their lives as soldiers. Badaró studied both male and female soldiers of varying ranks in the Argentine Army, most of whom were cadets or young officers at the Colegio Militar de la Nación (CMN), the only officer academy of the Argentine Army, to collect ethnographic data. Badaró gathered his data through observations, interviews, and informal conversations carried out over the course of nine years. He cites other anthropologists’ studies of female inclusive militaries to support his conclusions. While the article provides deep analysis into how the military is changing as an institution, it is lacking in its analysis of individual experiences.

In the article “Women in the Military” mentions the women have been joining the military since 2000. Besides that, women who serve the military do require a lot of physical requirement because of stereotypical thinking of women being weak. Even more, some commanders want more women to participate in the use of technology. Women tried fighting this kind of idea but managed to fail; In 2003 young women named Lynch was the only survivor of an insurgent attack in Iraq, which motivated more women to join the army. Even more, women that join the army also experienced harassment and rape. After these incidents, it was decided that the military training was not going to be co-ed basic training. By doing this the pentagon announced in 2013 that they

The military has become the epicenter for rape and abuse of women, all of which military officials have swept aside with all too little concern. Case after case of rape and sexual harassment are dismissed with little to no investigation made. The women of the military live scared of their male superiors and colleagues, and what they might do. Victims of sexual harassment or rape often see their pursuers honorably discharged and returned to society with no criminal record.

When it comes to combat assignments and the needs of the military, men take precedence over all other considerations, including career prospects of female service members. Female military members have been encouraged to pursue opportunities and career enhancement within the armed forces, which limit them only to the needs and good of the service due to women being not as “similarly situated” as their male counterparts when it comes to strength or aggressiveness, and are not able to handle combat situations.

Women have been participating in the United States military since the Revolutionary War, where they were nurses, maids, cooks and even spies. They played vital roles in order to keep those fighting on the front lines healthier, and even a more important role in keeping commanding officers informed with private information stolen from the other side. Although the Revolutionary War took play in 1776, the first law to be passed that permanently stated that women have an official place in the military was in 1948, almost one hundred and seventy-two years later. Since that time there has been a lack of true growth when it comes to integration of females in the military. In 1994, a law was passed that tried to prohibit women from being assigned to ground combat units below the brigade level. Women are excluded from more then 25% of active combat roles within the military and only in 2013 was the ban lifted which was the final barrier to allowing women into all active roles. This has been a huge step in the direction for women being considered as being equal but there are still challenges that women face within the military. Ranging from sexual assault, discrimination, bullying, and other tactics, it is clear that for many, the military is still a “boys club.”

In the book Gender, Sex, and the Postnational Defense Annica Kronsell is “interested in exploring the potential defense and its gender implications” (3). Looking at cases in the European Union and Sweden through a constructivist approach to gender she challenges the mainstream perspectives of masculinity and militarism. In questioning “whether the broader recognition of human security, and in particular gender and security, has influenced the way defense and military is organized” and “ to what extent gender relations have been transformed in the postnational security and defense context” (4-5) Kronsell challenged the assumptions of the status quo of male and female depicted roles in military organizations and the assumption that gender parity is not realistically achievable.

In Women in the Military, Janette Mance explores the debates and problems faced by the increasing number of women involved in the military. After examining issues such as pregnancy, sexual harassment, and rape, Mance concludes that as a society we must continue to strive for gender equality.