Implementation Of The Repeal Of The Combat Exclusion On Female Aviators

This handbook provides a straightforward account of how women have served in combat roles and explains the ongoing controversy surrounding efforts to legalize combat assignments for female service members. Women have been excluded from combat roles for most of American history. During conflicts such as the American Civil War, a few women enlisted as men; in some cases, their identities as women were not discovered until after their deaths. Today, the nontraditional battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan have no clearly defined front lines, and many female soldiers have found themselves face-to-face with the enemy. Yet despite the realities of modern warfare, the subject of women serving in combat roles remains highly controversial. Women in Combat: A Reference Handbook examines the historical background, current dilemmas, and global context of this contentious issue. The author explores both sides of the argument, presenting information from leading sources and gleaned from personal interviews. Statistical data, primary source documents, a directory of organizations, and print and electronic resources offer additional insight.

The Persian Gulf War changed the face of combat. It brought women’s military roles into the spotlight, in large part via the mass media, and showed that many women performed combat roles similar to those of men during the conflict. The war was thus an impetus for changes in laws that had prevented women from serving in combat assignments. In past centuries, because it was not culturally acceptable for women to serve in combat, surprising numbers joined secretly under assumed male names. After defining exactly what is meant by “war” and “combat,” this work presents historical and present-day views of the involvement of women in the military. The impact of regulations on women in combat is analyzed, as is the role of the American public in the controversy. Female combat is put into context with sociological theory; also discussed are readiness, cohesion, ability, sexuality, equal opportunity and family issues.

In the United States, the question of women in the armed services has been continuously and hotly debated. Among feminists, two fundamentally differing views of women in the military have developed. Feminist antimilitarists tell us that militarism and patriarchy have together pressed women into second class citizenship. Meanwhile, feminist soldiers and their advocates regard martial service as women's right and responsibility and the ticket to first class citizenship. Citizenship Rites investigates what is at stake for women in these debates. Exploring the perspectives of both feminist antimilitarists and feminist soldiers, Ilene Feinman situates the current combat controversy within the context of the sea change in United States politics since the 1970s-from ERA debates over drafting women to recent representations of military women such as the film GI Jane. Drawing on congressional testimony, court cases, feminist and antiracist political discourse, and antimilitarist activism, Feinman addresses our pressing need for an analysis of women's increasing inclusion in the armed forces while providing a provocative investigation of what this changing role means for women and society alike.