[ot-caption title=”Capt. Linda Bray poses in the Army’s Quarry Heights base in Panama City. She led an attack on Panamanian Defense Forces kennels in 1990, becoming the first woman to lead U.S. troops into battle. (AP Photo/Unknown)” url=”https://pcpawprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/admin-ajax.jpg”]

Although women have a history of serving in the military for over 3,000 years, women have only been admitted to serve in active duty since the beginning of the 1970s. However, women have recently been fighting for the same opportunities and treatment in the military as their fellow male soldiers.

In 2012, women were allowed to take part in the Marine Corps’ Infantry Officer Course, an arduous thirteen week course that tested soldiers both physically and mentally. However, by early 2014, the fourteen women who were brave enough to face the major challenges presented by the course all failed, including Second Lieutenant Sage Santangelo. “There came a point when I could not persuade my body to perform,” Santangelo stated in an article in the Washington Post. “It wasn’t a matter of will but of pure physical strength… I was told I could not continue.” Later on, Santangelo explained how the failure of these women should not be viewed as evidence that women cannot handle combat environments, but rather proof of the disadvantages women in the military have due to the dual standards between genders.

Santangelo’s arguments, along with those of other women, pushed the Army to reassess the viability of opening additional infantry jobs to women. In a Feb. 27, directive this year, 4,100 jobs were opened to women in special operations units of the Regular Army, National Guard, and Army Reserve. These changes are part of a long process, initiated in 2012, with the opening of 13,000 positions previously closed to women in eighty units. The goal is to have most jobs open to women by September of this year.

Despite these advancements in gender equality in the military, many men still argue that due to their biological structure, women are less physically capable than men and will therefore perform to lower standards.  Traditionally, this view was accepted widely, making a modern transition to more opportunities for women in the military a difficult idealogical leap.

Pine Crest sophomore Bryce Hackmeyer stated, “Women should be given the chance to prove themselves in the field. The opening of jobs to women will give them the opportunity to reach those positions, so whether or not they get the job will be based on merit instead of gender. The argument that women will perform to lesser standards is completely invalid. If a woman is more capable than a man, she should get the job over him.  The opening of these jobs to women makes that outcome possible.”

Throughout history, women have been battling societial preconceptions and have overcome great odds to prove themselves. If female success can be seen in fields such as business, finance, medicine, engineering, and so on, it will definitely be seen in the military field as well, as long as women are given the chance to prove themselves.

Sources: Washington Post, WLTX, Center for Military Readiness (CMR)