Weitkamp 1

Abby Weitkamp

Jason King

AP Seminar

12 December 2016

Women in the Military

Our greatest foes, and whom we must chiefly combat, are within (Cervantes). One

responsibility of a citizen is to defend ones country should the need arise (Citizenship). The

responsibilities of citizens are not specified based on gender. However, gender inequalities and

sexism are still prevalent within humankind today. Misogyny is also present in todays society

but on a smaller scale than gender inequalities and sexism. Misogyny is defined as the hatred,

dislike, or mistrust of women, or prejudice against women (Misogyny). However, misogyny is

present not only in society, but also in the military. This provokes the question: Does the

misogynistic culture of the military impede the abilities of women to fulfill their duty to fight for

their country?

The military is the soldiers that make up the armed forces for ones country. The United

States military is divided into five branches: Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and

Navy (U.S.). The Air Force is the branch of the military that fights and operates within the air.

The Army is the branch that fights on the ground. The Coast Guard works with domestic

waterways whereas the Navy works primarily in the sea. Lastly, the Marine Corps are the first

boots on the ground and fight by sea and land (U.S.). Today, there are women in each branch.

Women have been involved in war and in the military since 1775 (Time). However, they were

not always involved in combat like the men were. Instead they were nurses, cooks, and
 Weitkamp 2

eventually worked in non-combat roles. Recently, women have slowly been integrated into

combat positions. In February 2012, women were allowed into positions that worked with direct

ground combat units as well as battalion-level positions (Eckstein). On November 30, 2015,

Secretary of Defense Ash Carter announced that all combat positions within the military will be

open to women (Tilghman). These positions opened up on January 2, 2016 (Tilghman). Women

have been integrated into different positions within the military ever since. However, not

everyone is happy with this integration.

Many misogynistic people are opposed to women being in the military. Specifically, to

women being in the infantry. The infantry consists of soldiers fighting within the army. People

argue that the physical abilities of women are lesser when compared to men (Eden). Another

major issue is relationships within the military (Eden). Whether the relationship is mutual or

assault, it will cause issues. These issues will show as possible pregnancy as well as unit

cohesion. There is no 100% guarantee against pregnancy no matter what contraception is used. If

a woman does happen to become pregnant, it is viewed as a waste of resources because of the

money and time spent training that soldier as well as the money spent to send that soldier home.

One in four females are sexually assaulted in the military (Facts). If a female is sexually

assaulted, she may lose trust in her unit, and if trust is lost, the unit will struggle on the battlefield

(Eden). Each and every one of these misogynistic backed reasons is used to argue that women

should not have a role within the military.

One way this misogynistic culture impedes upon the abilities of women to fight for ones

country relates to the roles and jobs available to females within the military. All positions opened

up to women on January 2, 2016 (Tilghman). However, there has not been any sort of dramatic
 Weitkamp 3

increase of the numbers of females in the military as shown by the percentage of females serving

in the military still low at a modest 14.6% (Women). While part of the reason may be, that

women have not yet had the time to be fully integrated into these positions, another part may still

suggest that women are not as physically capable as the men are to serve in some of these

positions.

Men and women are extremely different when compared physically. Men are generally

stronger, faster, and have a stronger grip (Ghose). To qualify for each position within the

military, a person must achieve a certain physical standard. Thus, men are at an advantage over

women because in training, they can complete more of the standards because of their higher

muscle mass which creates more strength. However, not all positions involved in combat require

a soldier to carry one-hundred pounds of weight on ones back. Not all positions within the

military require a large amount of brute strength. Moreover, females may excel in one area not

related to strength, but that is skill specific instead. This excel is what will allow women into

various positions that do not require as much strength. However, males and females do have

different physical attributes and some of these attributes are what help humans reproduce which

can be a problem within itself.

Men and women are different sexually. Women can become pregnant but proper

contraception can prevent pregnancy. Some women become pregnant by sexual assault which is

a whole different problem. However, sexual assault is correctable. Even though one in four

women are sexually assaulted in the military, only 15% of the sexual assault crimes are reported

(Facts). Of the 15% cases reported, only about seven percent result in convictions. If more

people are convicted, women may feel more confident to step up and share their own story
 Weitkamp 4

because they believe punishment will occur as a result of their courage and reporting the crime

will not result in nothing. Those punished would then be removed from the situation, therefore

preventing more cases of sexual assault. It is also important to note that sexual assault does not

occur only in women. Therefore, sexual assault is an invalid argument for those arguing against

women in the military. While there is no easy fix for sexual assault, this would be one way that

could begin to prevent these crimes. Preventing these crimes would help to develop better unit

cohesion.

Unit cohesion is divided into two groups: task cohesion and social cohesion (Unit). Task

cohesion refers to the shared commitment among members to achieving a goal that requires the

collective efforts of the group (Unit). Therefore, if men and females have the same motivation,

there should be no problems with the task cohesion of a unit. Social cohesion refers to the

nature and quality of emotional bonds of friendship, liking, caring, and closeness among group

members (Unit). Consequently, social cohesion is what would be most affected by relationships

within a military unit. Social cohesion is also what would be affected by the misogynistic culture

of the military. If some soldiers believe women are lesser, the emotional closeness of the unit

will be lacking. Thus, a decrease in sexual assault as well as the misogynistic culture would help

improve unit cohesion greatly.

To all the naysayers about females in the military, keep in mind that it has been done

successfully before. Gayle Tzemach Lemmon completed a Ted Talk and wrote a book all about a

special group of women that were on the front lines of the battlefield at a time when women were

still banned from combat. In 2010, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command called for

women to join them on the battlefields of Afghanistan (Lemmon). They wanted to create
 Weitkamp 5

Cultural Support Teams in order to build relationships with the Afghan women because

Afghan women were not allowed to speak to the male soldiers (Lemmon). These women worked

with different units and helped SEALs, Berets, and Rangers (Lemmon). The women helped the

groups communicate with the women in Afghan communities and also helped them find people

and objects. However, the most important thing to remember is that while these women had an

impact, the men they worked with supported them (Lemmon). The men that supported them did

not possess the misogynistic attitude that is impeding on the abilities of women to defend ones

country. These women are warriors and they have set the precedent for many females to come.

It is evident that the culture of the military and how women within the military are

viewed plays an important role in the success of women in the military. Each and every citizen

has the responsibility to serve ones country should the need arise. As women are citizens, this

responsibility also falls upon them. But this responsibility should not differ among genders.

Women are not inferior or particularly untrustworthy, and need to stop being treated as such.

They can be on the front lines of war and succeed. It is time for the misogynistic culture that is

still evident in the military today to disperse. Men are not the only people capable of success in

serving ones country. After all, women can be heroes too (Lemmon).
 Weitkamp 6

Works Cited

Cervantes, Miguel D. Combat Quotes. Brainy Quote, Brainy Quote. 2016.

https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/migueldece157071.html?src=t_combat.

Accessed 22 November 2016.

Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,

https://www.uscis.gov/citizenship/learners/citizenship-rights-and-responsibilities.

Accessed 7 Nov. 2016.

Eden, Jude. "The Problems of Women in Combat - From a Female Combat Vet." Western

Journalism, 26 Jan. 2013,

www.westernjournalism.com/the-problems-of-women-in-combat-from-a-female-combat-

vet/.

Eckstein, Megan. "Timeline: Women In Combat Roles." USNI News, 21 Sept. 2015,

news.usni.org/2015/09/21/timeline-women-in-combat-roles.

"Facts on United States Military Sexual Violence." Protect Our Defenders, Sept. 2016.

Ghose, Tia. "Women in Combat: Physical Differences May Mean Uphill Battle." Live Science, 7

Dec. 2015, www.livescience.com/52998-women-combat-gender-differences.html.

Lemmon, Gayle Tzemach. Meet the women fighting on the front lines of an American war.

Ted Talks, July 2015, Guest Lecture.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXvUdCdKTJY. Accessed 13 Nov. 2016.

Misogyny. Dictionary.com, http://www.dictionary.com/browse/misogyny. Accessed 30 Nov.

2016.
 Weitkamp 7

Tilghman, Andrew. "All combat jobs open to women in the military." Military Times, 3 Dec.

2015,

www.militarytimes.com/story/military/pentagon/2015/12/03/carter-telling-military-open-

all-combat-jobs-women/76720656/.

"Time Line: Women in the U.S. Military." Colonial Williamsburg, 2008,

www.history.org/history/teaching/enewsletter/volume7/images/nov/women_military_tim

eline.pdf.

"Unit Cohesion and the Military Mission." UC Davis Psychology, University of California

Davis, 2012, psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/military_cohesion.html.

"U.S. Armed Forces Overview." Military.com, 2016,

www.military.com/join-armed-forces/us-military-overview.html.

"Women in the Military Statistics." Statistic Brain, 27 July 2016,

www.statisticbrain.com/women-in-the-military-statistics/.