Discrimination in the Military
Yes, the military does have sexual harassment and
discrimination against women in the nineties. "Firestone and
co-researcher Richard J. Hurns analyzed a 1988 DOD Survey of men and
women in the military and found that 51.8 % of men and 74.6% of women
reported either experiencing or knowing of sexual harassment. Amoung
the women surveyed, 70.1% had experienced "sexual talk or behavior at
the work place [that] created an offensive, hostile or intimidating
environment." Amoung the men, 36.9% gave the same answer."(1) The
percent of women being sexually harassed is much higher than the
percent of men being harassed. Even though it is not tolerated, it
still happens regardless of the consequences, even in the nineties.
While some women's experiences have been similar to those of black
men, their integration into the military has also differed in several
ways. Because of our society's fundamental belief that protecting the
home and going to war are a man's work, men from minority groups have
often been accepted more readily in the military than the women. Women
have been viewed as outsiders in a male environment. Discrimination
and harassment occurs for women because we are entering an all male
dominated area. Some areas are still restricted because of it. For
example: serving in direct combat capacities such as armor, infantry,
and special forces-branches from which much of the senior leadership
is drawn. "In 1994, the annual Navywide Personnel Survey included
questions on women's role for the first time. Some 65 percent of
officers and almost 50 percent of enlisted respondents said they did
not think women were fully accepted in combat roles. While
approximately 80 percent said harassment was not tolerated at their
command, almost half of all respondents disagreed that everyone is
treated equally in promotions and advancements."(2) Some of this is
bases on the presumed physical and psychological characteristics of
women which may interfere with their performances of some military
jobs. For example: the physical strength of women. People believe that
women are not strong enough to lift and carry heavy equipment or
wounded fellow soldiers and that we lack endurance to perform these
tasks over a lengthened period of time.
"Update: Women in the Military." Issues and Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 29 May 2007. Web.
Discrimination, in one form or another, goes on everyday in the world around us. Discrimination affects all of us whether we are aware of it or not. Discrimination is defined as “unjustified differential treatment, especially on the basis of characteristics such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or religion” (MacKinnon). According to Eugene Lee of California Labor and Employment Law “racial discrimination and racial harassment” are the most popular complaint when it come to discrimination in the United States.
In September 2011, the United States lifted the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy (DADT), which restricted gay, lesbian, and bisexuals from openly serving in the military. This was the first time in American history in which people of every sexual orientation could serve openly (“11 Facts About,” n.d.). This was a momentous occasion for some and not so much for others. For those military members that had served in secret and those members that were firmly against gays and lesbians, this repeal had different meaning. Both groups contained members that have served in the military for years and were products of the Former President Bill Clinton’s 1993 “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. For many soldiers of this era, communication issues arose due to a pre-existing mentality, learned rules and regulations in services reinforced for two decades and the general cultural within combat related fields.
Women all around the world who are in the military are constantly getting harassed and raped by the soldiers and there is nothing that anybody is doing about it.
During a daring battle in 1782, one brave soldier walked away with two deep flesh wounds caused by bullets. Many soldiers came to her rescue, but she could not risk being discovered as a woman. During the eighteenth century, women were not allowed to pick up a weapon in battle, thus the stories of women going undercover as men to fight started to appear. She was later honorably discharged for being caught, but her bravery was a catalyst for women joining the military. Her story proved that it takes one woman to make a change in society and lead the way for other women. The military is still seen as a primarily male job, but women have proved that they are equally capable. Now, the women make up about 14.5% of the military
Statistics from a poll that was took from USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll in 2005, 27 percent of citizens think women should be able to serve anywhere in Iraq, 32 percent think that they should serve as support for ground combat units, and 44 percent think women should not be assigned to infantry units (“Attitudes Toward Women in Combat” #10). Many people are concerned that the women will be used as a prisoner of war, lack physical strength that will disable them in a mission, or wouldn't be equipped to handle stress situations. Women have proven themselves otherwise. Data from the 2011 class at West Point shows that 50 percent of female Cadets, a select group, passes the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) using the male standards. A percentage of women are just as efficient as men. New research suggests that women can enhance combat performances of the military without disrupting...
The gender integration in the military has always faced questions of social acceptance, weather society can accept how women will be qualified and respected in the military as today. As of today, the decision has been made and allowed women to fill about 220,000 jobs that are now limited to men which includes infantry, armor, reconnaissance and some special operations units. The recruitment numbers of women have been increasing since than which reflects the importance of severing as role model for future women to join infantry and other ground combat jobs which they have been prohibited from. Women have extensively served in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, but discrimination still continues till today. The military requirements are physical tests and standards such as long deployments aboard ships, exceptions for infantry which male units perform better than women. Women’s acknowledgement has not really changed which stated by Carter “ He said there are “physical differences on average” between men and women and that “thus far, we’ve only seen small numbers of women qualify to meet our high physical standards” for some units “ (Bradner, p. 3).There are not many exceptions for women fulfilling the needs to open opportunity jobs in the military but with little hope which men inhale the endurance and strength that are not viewed towards
In promoting freedom and equality, democratic countries throughout the world have been recruiting and admitting women into their armed forces. By opening the doors of a highly patriarchal institution to women, governments are said to be upholding gender equity and equality. However, the enlistment of women in the armed forces remains a heated subject of debate and controversy, given that women, across sectors and ranks in the military, continue to experience institutional-based discrimination.
Nearly eight percent of 22.2 million veterans are women in 2011 and expected to increase to eleven percent by 2020.
to what she was entitled to. She claimed the same rate of basic pay as
In the Iraq and Afghanistan war over 220,000 women served and held positions such as flying helicopters, planes, driving trucks, serving as a officer, medic and gunners which took up ninety percent of the occupations in the military. Unfortunately over 600 servicewomen were wounded; over 135 lost their lives and as few as 24 servicewomen lost a limb or more (Cater, 2012, p. 1443-1444).
Job discrimination has been a poison polluting the atmosphere of the workforce for a countless number of decades. Unfortunately, it is a poison that still lingers in today’s modern workforce. To combat this threat, and to aid those individuals affected, several Federal laws have been implemented to prohibit job discrimination. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, as an example, is a Federal legislation that outlawed unequal opportunities and rights in the workplace. The purpose of this legislation is to prohibit employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin ("Federal laws prohibiting," 2009). However, is it a justified action for a business to hire staff based solely on the fact that they are Christian? After all, Federal law prohibits employment discrimination based not only on color, race, sex, or national origin, but also based on religion. How should an employer respond that is proposing for their hiring policy to target dedicated Christians only?
The United States Armed Forces are the federal military force of the United States and there are five service branches, the U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force, and the U.S. Coast Guard. As of 2012, women comprised 14.6 percent of the Department of Defense Active Duty force while men comprised 85.4 percent of the Department of Defense Active Duty force (Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, 2012). Given this skewed distribution in which men are considered the dominant type, they are able to control the group and its culture whereas women are called “tokens” (Kanter, 1993). Women may experience barriers in the workplace that may arise from their status
Patten, Eileen, and Kim Parker. "Women in the U.S. Military: Growing Share, Distinctive Profile." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends Project RSS. N.p., 22 Dec. 2001. Web. 28 Feb. 2014. .
The story of America’s military woman can be traced to the birth of our nation. During the American Revolutionary War, the 18th and 19th centuries, where women served informally as nurses, seamstresses, cooks, and even as spies and were subject to Army’s rules of Conduct. Though not in uniform, these women shared soldier’s hardships including inadequate housing and little compensation. Women have formally been part of the U.S Armed Forces since the Inception of the Army Nurse Corps in 1901. In 1973 the transition to the All-Volunteer Force marked a dramatic increase in the opportunities available for women to serve in the military. As of September 30, 2009, the total number of active duty women in the U.S was 203, 375, and women made up 14.3 percent of the U.s armed forces (Robinson). Women are a crucial role in c...