Gender, Sex, And The Postnational Defense

“Should Women Head Into Combat?” National Journal, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints In Context, go.galegroup.com.catalog.stisd.net:2048/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=j031916004&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE|A295443049&asid=8445d2f3fc63af3ae9ac94cfdd3067fd. Accessed Dec. 2017.

The author argues the “combat masculine-warrior paradigm is the essence of military culture. This paradigm persists today even with the presence of “others” (e.g. women and gays) who do not fit the stereotypical image of combatant or masculine warrior.” In a 5-paragraph essay, discuss how the presence of women or gays will cause the military culture to change.

The inequality of the military has men doing the double of what women do because they are seen as being mentally and physically stronger. This relates to the requirements of the military that they have in place which indeed need to be changed for it to be deemed as an equal service. This identifies

For decades, men have been the ones that were drafted into the army while the women had to fulfill their roles as housewives at home. Countless wars have passed before women were able to fight and serve for their country, such as but not limited to: the American Civil War, Spanish-American War, WWI, and WWII. It wasn’t until 1948 that congress passed the Women’s Armed Services Integration act which permitted women to officially serve in the military and receive veteran’s benefits. Still today, there are stereotypes about women and the fact that they should not have as much involvement in military roles, even after an act has been passed for that specific reason. In a New York Times online and print article, “Arms and the Women,” Gail Collins argues that “the system is complicated”

Since the Second World War, the functions and responsibilities of women in Canadian society has significantly changed. This societal shift has been considerably perceptible in one of Canada’s finest institutions; the military. Today, Canada is a global front-runner in military gender integration, excelling with regards to both the proportion of women in its military - currently around 14.8% of combined Regular and Reserve Force personnel - as well as in the roles in which they can serve.

United States of America and Sweden, two countries that possess vastly different approaches to war and conflict. Each having a set of benefits and downfalls. To examine the two counties properly, one must note the defining differences between the two, such as their preparation for war, government views, and responses to war. After the examination of the two, only then can one see that there are substantial advantages and quite a few disadvantages to both systems. This essay is a focalized comparison of America and Sweden’s government stances on war, not individual citizens.

The book, Women in Combat: A Reference Handbook, display how women have been serving and involved in combat dating back to ancient times. The Author, Rosemarie Skaine, provides references that highlight women achievements and link their participation to the respective conflicts. She articulates the challenges women face from balancing family life to sexual issues. She also compares the role of women in the United States Military to foreign militaries. The book paints an overall sketch of women on the battlefield without a front line and their willingness to confront all odds.

In the article “‘One of the Guys’: Military Women, Paradoxical Individuality, and the Transformations of the Argentine Army,” the author Máximo Badaró analyzes how the addition of women into the Argentine military has lead to institutional changes within the military. The article’s main focus is on the how the addition of female soldiers has redefined what it means to be a soldier and how this has changed the military as an institution. He also analyzes the agency available to women in the military and the role their femininity plays in their lives as soldiers. Badaró studied both male and female soldiers of varying ranks in the Argentine Army, most of whom were cadets or young officers at the Colegio Militar de la Nación (CMN), the only officer academy of the Argentine Army, to collect ethnographic data. Badaró gathered his data through observations, interviews, and informal conversations carried out over the course of nine years. He cites other anthropologists’ studies of female inclusive militaries to support his conclusions. While the article provides deep analysis into how the military is changing as an institution, it is lacking in its analysis of individual experiences.

One study (Binkin & Bach) found that many NATO and several WARSAW PACT countries employed women in combat roles during World War II. Russia was reported as using military women on the front lines. In Israel, where they are actually conscripted, women have also experienced armed combat. (Binkin & Bach) found that in the first phase of Israel’s war of Liberation, one out of every five soldiers was female and they shared equality in both offensive and defensive battle situations. Holm found that some 7,500 military women served in S.E. Asia during the Vietnam War. She maintains that these women proved the modern American military woman is fully capable of functioning effectively in a military role in a combat environment, even under direct hostile fire.

Women have been in combat since the beginning; when tribes fought over food and other materials. As centuries went on, women such as Joan of Arc and Bodecia fought as warriors. Women donned men’s clothing during the Revolutionary War, the American Civil War, and the Spanish-American War and fought before being discovered when hurt or dead. These women include Deborah Sampson she served for over a year in General Washington’s army and Molly Pitcher, a water carrier, single handedly kept a cannon in action after an artillery crew had been disabled. These women fought just as fierce in battle as any man.

Since 1901, women have served in some form of the military, however, dating back to the American Revolution women have had an unofficial role. Women have had and will continue to have an important role in the military, the question is whether women should be allowed to occupy specific combat positions. Traditionally women have not been allowed in combat occupations, but recently these restrictions have been somewhat lifted, making certain occupations available to women. Despite the lift complications arise from women being in combat vocations and it’s not just because of the physical differences, there is also the increased risk of sexual assault. Due to the detrimental impact on the military, soldiers, and society, women should not

When it comes to combat assignments and the needs of the military, men take precedence over all other considerations, including career prospects of female service members. Female military members have been encouraged to pursue opportunities and career enhancement within the armed forces, which limit them only to the needs and good of the service due to women being not as “similarly situated” as their male counterparts when it comes to strength or aggressiveness, and are not able to handle combat situations.

Through this written piece of work, I want to examine the ways in which the dominant ideas of gender and war, from a Feminist perspective. I will be contributing an understanding to the role of the Kurdish female fighters in the field of war and politics, that have broken the taboos of gender roles within the community, and the national movement. The concept of gender, war, and conflict has lightened the issue of women in war. The image of war is associated to masculinity, and in many cases women are not welcomes in the field of war, as “she is exposed as a victim of war by drawing the idea of women being helpless (Sjoberg, 2014, p. 10).” Laura Sjoberg; Gender, War, and Conflict, states that “war-making and war-fighting have been traditionally

I realized that although in theory women in the armed forces seemed like a good idea, there are many obstacles that make that reality very difficult to achieve. In writing this paper I am not proposing that either position is more valid or right than the other. I only hope to present each side in an equal light to help others to understand the issues involved.

“We are all equal; it is not birth but virtue alone that makes the difference.” This insightful quote from the famous French philosopher and historian “Voltaire” seems to accurately represent the beliefs of the factions of American citizens pushing to allow women to fight in combat positions within the US Armed Forces. Though the topic has just recently been boosted into the media and congressional politics, it has been long debated. A rather current editorial from USA Today titled: “Open Combat Positions to Women” outlines the recent developments in the status of a much disputed and controversial issue facing the nation today. Though somewhat less in-depth than some opposing opinions, the