Difference between revisions of "Women in the military"

Revision as of 03:18, May 2, 2008

Women in the military can help a country by relieving men of jobs which either sex can do, thus providing more men for combat duty. Men are so much better at combat^[1] that it makes sense to permit (or require) women to stay away from the front lines.

While there are hundreds of women currently serving with distinction in limited combat roles today, there had been some controversy early on when accommodations were made to break the gender barrier in certain roles. For example, Kelly Flynn was given five extra chances to complete flight school, while her male peers were given only one chance before "washing out".

U.S. Military Research on Women's Fitness for Military Service

In 1994, Congress provided $40M for biomedical research on issues of importance for military women.^[2] This supported 104 intramural and 30 extramural studies and launched an era of research to narrow the knowledge gap on protection and enhancement of health and performance of military women. Several important assumptions about female physiology and occupational risks were found to be wrong:

1. There is almost no overlap between the weakest male and strongest female soldiers for upper body strength.
2. Hormonal changes through the menstrual cycle were less important to acute health risks and performance than predicted
3. In load carriage studies, women with 75 lb backpacks performed better than predicted by published planning guidance.
4. Women tolerated G-forces and could be as safe as men in the cockpit if their equipment was designed for normal size and strength ranges.

This surge of research has translated into advances for the welfare of servicewomen and the readiness of the entire force; relevant gender issues are now routine considerations for researchers and equipment developers, and some key remaining research gaps of special importance to military women continue to be investigated.

Effectiveness of Women in US Military Combat Roles

American female servicewomen are distinguishing themselves in duty, and proving through their contributions that they are able to serve in combat roles based on merit. In an 1999 interview, Rear Adm. Alfred Harms says he has little reason to know the gender of the pilot who sits behind the controls of each plane. "On any given day I don't have a clue who is in which aircraft, and frankly it doesn't matter. They are absolutely one and the same, and we look at each one of our men and women as sailors. And we have great sailors on this ship" ^[3](the USS Carl Vinson).

In Operation Enduring Freedom in Iraq, female helicopter pilots like Capt. Sarah Piro are demonstrating their valor in Iraq in one of the few direct combat roles women are officially allowed to perform in the military. Their missions often put them at risk of being hit by enemy machine-gun fire and rockets, and require them to shoot back. In recent months of fighting, Piro has quietly sleuthed out targets, laid down suppressive fire for GIs in battle and chased insurgents through dangerous urban settings, maneuvering all the while to avoid being shot out of the sky. In one incident, she limped back to base in a bullet-riddled helicopter, ran to another aircraft and returned to the fight 10 minutes later. "There was no one I wanted to hear more on a raid than her. She's a spectacular Army aviator," according to Major Chris Kennedy, executive officer of the regiment.^[4]

Notes

External links

• Military, Army and War - No Women in Combat - Argumentative Persuasive Essays
• Why Women Should Not Be Allowed In Combat - Joshua Sowin
• Lyudmila Mikhailovna Pavlichenko, deadliest woman sniper of WWII.

See also

• equal opportunity
• affirmative action
• employment quotas