Women in Combat
Women in Combat
Women in combat is an issue that I believe should be given a little more thought and attention. I personally feel that women should be allowed to be in ground combat operations if they desire to do so. I do not feel that it is fair to exclude someone from performing a job within the military simply due to their gender. I do feel that women who want to go to combat should be able to perform the same physical tasks as the men currently in those positions. This issue hits close to home for me since my husband served four years active duty in the Army and I myself was in ROTC during my first two years of college. During those two years I was on a very strict physical fitness program and was able to perform with the same standards as the men. I do not feel that if I had continued to pursue my career as a woman in the Army that I should have been excluded from certain jobs just because of my gender.
In Lucinda Joy Peach’s essay, Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 1 of 7] she states that as far back as the Revolutionary War there have been women who have served in the military and in combat positions. During World War II, women served as nurses on the battlefield. Most women were discharged from service after WWII ended, however in 1948 Congress passed the Integration of Women in the Armed Forces Act which created permanent places for women in the military for the first time. This did limit the percentage of women that were allowed to enlist and excluded women from combat positions (Peach 1).
In Martha McSally’s, Women in Combat: Is the Current Policy Obsolete? she cites the Department of Defense policy on excluding women from combat which defines “direct combat” as “engaging an enemy on the ground with individual or crew served weapons, while being exposed to hostile fire and to a high probability of direct physical contact with hostile force 's personnel. Direct ground combat takes place well forward on the battlefield
Women in combat is an issue that I believe should be given a little more thought and attention. I personally feel that women should be allowed to be in ground combat operations if they desire to do so. I do not feel that it is fair to exclude someone from performing a job within the military simply due to their gender. I do feel that women who want to go to combat should be able to perform the same physical tasks as the men currently in those positions. This issue hits close to home for me since my husband served four years active duty in the Army and I myself was in ROTC during my first two years of college. During those two years I was on a very strict physical fitness program and was able to perform with the same standards as the men. I do not feel that if I had continued to pursue my career as a woman in the Army that I should have been excluded from certain jobs just because of my gender.
In Lucinda Joy Peach’s essay, Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 1 of 7] she states that as far back as the Revolutionary War there have been women who have served in the military and in combat positions. During World War II, women served as nurses on the battlefield. Most women were discharged from service after WWII ended, however in 1948 Congress passed the Integration of Women in the Armed Forces Act which created permanent places for women in the military for the first time. This did limit the percentage of women that were allowed to enlist and excluded women from combat positions (Peach 1).
In Martha McSally’s, Women in Combat: Is the Current Policy Obsolete? she cites the Department of Defense policy on excluding women from combat which defines “direct combat” as “engaging an enemy on the ground with individual or crew served weapons, while being exposed to hostile fire and to a high probability of direct physical contact with hostile force 's personnel. Direct ground combat takes place well forward on the battlefield
Cited: McSally, Martha. “Women in Combat: is the current policy obsolete?”. Duke Journal of Gender Law and Policy 14.2 (May 2007): 1011(49). General OneFile. Gale. Oakland Community College. 27 May 2008 <http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=ITOF>. Peach, Lucinda Joy. “Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 1 of 7].” Contempo- rary Women’s Issues Database. 01 Dec 1994. 1-9. eLibrary. Proquest CSA. Oakland Community College. 05 Jun 2008. <,http://elibrary.bigchalk.com>. Peach, Lucinda Joy. “Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 2 of 7].” Contempo- rary Women’s Issues Database. 01 Dec 1994. 1-9. eLibrary. Proquest CSA. Oakland Community College. 05 Jun 2008. <,http://elibrary.bigchalk.com>. Peach, Lucinda Joy. “Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 3 of 7].” Contempo- rary Women’s Issues Database. 01 Dec 1994. 1-9. eLibrary. Proquest CSA. Oakland Community College. 05 Jun 2008. <,http://elibrary.bigchalk.com>. Peach, Lucinda Joy. “Women at War-The Ethics of Women in Combat [Part 4 of 7].” Contempo- rary Women’s Issues Database. 01 Dec 1994. 1-9. eLibrary. Proquest CSA. Oakland Community College. 05 Jun 2008. <,http://elibrary.bigchalk.com>.