Remember Shannon Faulkner? In 1995, Faulkner was the first woman to enroll at the Citadel following a federal court order. I remember Faulkner. I was a high school student at the time and I closely followed her court case. Even though I personally had no intention of attending a military academy or enlisting in the military, I cheered on Faulkner and her right to try. Her right to follow her dream. Her right to prove herself against the male students.
Twenty years later, I find myself again cheering on those female pioneers in the military. The ones who are working to break gender barriers to prove that they are tough enough, strong enough and smart enough to call themselves Army Rangers.
What do you think of women serving as Army Rangers?
Media outlets, from NPR to Fox News, have been closely following 60 women who volunteered and were allowed to participate in the two-week-long Ranger Training Assessment Course (RTAC) that ended on Jan. 31. This first class was aimed at making the training standard for females. And I’m a big believer in that.
Let’s not sell women short by adopting lower standards to earn the Ranger tab. Every single Ranger should be able to meet the same qualifications.
Out of 122 soldiers who started RTAC, 48 percent passed. There were 43 male dropouts in addition to the 21 women, the Army Times reported. Five women, all officers, completed RTAC, which is considered to be a reliable litmus test for which soldiers are likely to have a chance at passing the Ranger Course.
First Lt. Christel Sacco, executive officer of Company B, 1st Battalion, 61st Infantry Regiment, at Fort Jackson, S.C., is training to earn her Ranger tab.
Last December, for the first time, 3 women passed the Marine Corps’ physical test to become infantry officers. Two dozen female Marines have tried to pass the test since the course opened its doors to women in 2012. Later this year, U.S. Special Operations Command and Naval Special Warfare are expected to announce if the rank of SEAL will be available to women.
All this female integration stems from former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta’s announcement in 2012 to open combat positions to women. In 2013, he lifted the military’s exclusion on women in direct ground combat. By 2016, the military must open all combat jobs to women or ask for special exceptions.
Twenty years after Faulkner’s legal battle, I am even more emotionally attached to integrating females into all aspects of the military. Today I’m a Navy wife and I’ve seen my husband work alongside and under the outstanding leadership of women all the way up to Rear Admiral Katherine Gregory. Gregory is the first female flag officer in the Civil Engineer Corps.
I’m also the mother of 2 young girls who are constantly asking if boys are better than girls. Just last night, my daughter asked if girls can be Seabees. Of course, my husband and I reassured her. Girls can do anything that boys can do. Some day soon, they will even be able to serve as Army Rangers.
The standards should not be changed one bit but even then I don’t think it is a good idea. I know about some of the missions my husband, a green beret, went on and there is no way a woman who was on her period would be able to do what was necessary to carry out the mission. The true nature of the menstrual cycle and what is required as far as hygiene goes would be putting herself and all the other team members in danger. So, when it is her “time of the month” does she just get a pass? Where is the equality in that? BTW, no, I would not my husband to have a female on his team. Not at all!
If they are qualified, meeting the standards, then women should be able to join any group the in military, including the elite!
Women in combat units or situations are a distraction…period. Though I’m sure there are a few who can pass all the tests and overcome some self-induced inferiority complex, the question simply remains…why? To prove something? OK, great…your a bad ass. So what! Is there not enough male Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, Coasties or Sailors to complete any mission that comes along? I think not.
Admin pogues making leadership decisions concerning military matters, without any military background, continue to create problems for this country. Panetta, whose military background only consisted of 2 years as an Intel Officer, should never have been associated with any military policy decision. It’s just bad business!
If the Army hadn’t decided having a Ranger tab made an officer worthy of promotion to command positions, we would not be seeing the push for women to go to Ranger school. It is the discrimination of a having women in combat since 2003, but not promoting them equally with their brother soldiers, because they are officially in “non-combat” positions. Maybe the services should look at themselves and see that their “tabs and badges” list for promotion is ridiculous and that they have too many generals and not enough privates. Extremely few women will want to be on the elite teams, or qualify. Those that make it through, more power to them.
As long as the standards are not changed I see no problem with women being in a Special Forces unit. I served with women who not only did what her male counterpart did but also exceeded him. I am not saying that they should be included on every assignment but there are some jobs where a woman may be better suited.
As a female veteran of the USAF I too think it is too much of a distraction. It is not a question of women being qualified or competent enough to do the job, it should be a question of what’s best for us as a nation and the armed forces in general. Women may serve in special forces ….yes, but there still should be a distinction between what jobs are appropriate for female soldiers. I challenge anyone to watch the documentary “Restrepo” and make a solid case as to how it would be beneficial to place female soldiers in that situation.
In general, men are larger and hand to hand combat is usually a matter of strength and size versus technique. Female combatants are a sign of desperation. Israel conscripts their women because they HAVE TO. Have we reached this stage? There is always the caveat: If they maintain the same standards”. Have we EVER? Look to our education system, or the six months pregnant foot soldier to pooped to patrol with her unit. I have seen it and “it ain’t pretty”.
Totally against women in these type of fields…I served in the USAF and my husband did 32+ years in the Marine Corps…and he feels the same….we need to stop political correctness in the military and go back to the days of our men serving in battle and our women in supporting roles. The women who served in the WAFs, Waves, WACs and the women of the Marines…served this country proudly and in many roles. We also had stronger Commanders in Chiefs