AP report, front page Stripes headline, 25 June 2005: "Car bomber strikes convoy of Marines." This strike has left more female US soldiers dead than at any other time during the US invasion.
I hope this writer hasn't ended up on the casualty manifest.
*********************
Support troops, not just men
The writer of the May 28 letter “Army not a social experiment” argues: “Men and women need to have the same standard.” This statement reinforces the patriarchal values that still keep women oppressed.
Even in the United States, women are frequently considered social “outcasts,” differing from the social normalcy based on baldness or short haircuts. Therefore, it isn’t practical to project an egalitarian ideology. If the writer thinks about it, perhaps he’d realize that women don’t need to have a “masculine appearance” to accept the military as a whole new lifestyle. We do confidence courses, and get corrected, etc. as well as the males. This helps us to realize a whole new life — more than a haircut ever could.
The writer seems to believe that women are not in combat. This is a fallacy. We currently have female gunners on the .50-caliber and M249 turrets during every convoy. During a recent operation, we were building a bridge to cross Marines while mortars and indirect fire surrounded us all. It is just as easy for a bullet to hit a female as it is a male. Ammunition does not discriminate based on gender.Women do not meet male standards because our bodies are proportioned to support weight differently. Indeed, there are males who fail to pull their weight in the Army as well.
There is no doubt that women would join the infantry if they could. No matter what gender, if you can’t handle the job you need to get out.
Leading troops … if a male in charge is killed, and a woman is next to him, she should not lead the troops because she’s a female? Most casualties are male, since there are more males in Iraq.
I ask the writer: Have you ever accomplished a combat mission next to a female? If not, you need to stay in your lane. I am a female 21C Bridge crewmember noncommissioned officer with the confidence to lead soldiers just as efficiently as a male NCO. I have built bridges proficiently and have witnessed the same in many other females and males alike.
Right now, women are not on the front lines because we don’t have a choice. Our right to be called “soldiers” should not be revoked. Our government still hasn’t changed with the times, and obviously, neither have you.
The bottom line is: Soldiers are soldiers. Women are expected to do the same job in their military occupational specialty as males. Support your troops, not just your men.
Sgt. Kristy L. Nunez
Balad, Iraq
http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=29950
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
