Women should serve just as men do
On Jan. 24, the U.S. Military Academy ended its policy of excluding women from combat and opened those jobs and direct combat units to female troops. Once the policy is changed, the Department of Defense will enter an “assessment phase,” in which each branch of service will examine its jobs and units not currently integrated and then produce a timetable for integrating them.
I strongly support the idea of allowing women in military combat, because of human rights and the feminist movement. Women in Israel, France, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Norway are allowed to serve in combat. The U.S. has taken a step forward in freedom and liberty to serve. President Obama repealed the “Don’t ask, Don’t tell Act” in order to allow the gay community to serve liberally in the military without having the fear of rejection while serving.
If we take a closer look in history, Joan of Arc was a woman who led the last French troops during the Hundred Years’ War. It is because of her that France regained control of their land in Europe. Once the French discovered that Joan of Arc was a woman, they executed her. She was later recognized as a saint and is an important figure in Christianity.
What does this little piece of history tell us? It proves that women are also capable of defending their country. Israel needs women in the military because hostile countries surround them and because its population is really small. Imagine if only men were allowed to serve in the Israeli Defense Forces. In this case, Israel would suffer from a shortage of soldiers and would hardly be able to defend itself.
It is also true that we will need to look at human rights. The majority of Americans support equal values and rights. If you do believe in it, then why would you not allow woman to serve in military combat?
These recent events, such as repealing the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy and allowing women the privilege of serving in combat, are really important. We are changing our way of thinking and becoming more and more liberal than ever before. If we look at the other countries that let women serve in combat, we can notice that they are even more liberal and are becoming less conservative regarding human rights.
Many years ago, women’s educational opportunities were limited; most could not attend college. Instead, women were encouraged to learn how to cook and play piano. Today, the majority of American women attend college, and there are plenty of women who have done extraordinary things in their lifetimes.
Since women are now allowed to serve in combat, the U.S. will gain more soldiers. This will not only reinforce the defenses of the country, but will also increase the nation’s level of patriotism among citizens who believe in freedom and liberty. I do support female involvement in important special operations. They can possess the same physical and mental abilities as men.
For the other side of this FACEOFF – “A woman’s place is not on the battlefield”, written by Faren Rajkumar, click here.
