Critical Thinking Women in the military draft

Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Date Women in Military The gendered nature of the military organization significantly influences the participation of women in military operations. Although society is continually making progress toward gender equality, the pace has been slow in the military, especially in combat operations. Given that the combat exclusion rule was repealed in 1994 and full combat integration has now been attained, one would expect more participation of women in combat operations (Lawrence et al. 488). However, despite the removal of policy assignments and legal obstacles, there still remain attitudinal barriers as well as biases that hinder women's full participation in military jobs. The nature of future wars calls for solving the challenges women face while serving and sensitizing future leaders on the role of women in the military. The place of women in the military has undergone significant development historically. When the Army Nurse Corps was created in 1901, it marked the beginning of women officially serving in the military (Moore 3). In the 19th century, while there were those who disguised themselves and served as male soldiers, women primarily served as laundresses, cooks, and nurses (Moore 3). To a great extent, women's participation in military operations was socially constructed, given that they were confined to roles traditionally reserved for women. Even when they wanted to serve as soldiers, they could only do it disguised as males. The manpower shortages that characterized World War I did little to help with their participation as the prevailing attitudes restricted military jobs to men, while in World War II, women were assigned administrative and clerical jobs to free men to go for combat (Moore 3-4). After WWII, women's role in the military declined significantly as they went back to their previous duties. It is evident that the low participation of women that characterizes the military up to today has strong historical roots. Demystifying the factors that prevented the women’s full participation in military operations is important in developing strategies to incorporate more of them into the force. Addressing the challenges women face in the mil...