Along with gun control and abortion, the issue of women serving in combat in the military remains an explosive and controversial issue. Under President Clinton, Defense Secretary Les Aspin ordered changes in policy that removed ôsubstantial risk of captureö from the list of grounds for excluding women from specific military units along with abolishing the ôrisk ruleö (Freddoso 2003, 1). Two females were killed in the USS Cole bombing and in the war against Iraq three females were captured, including the killing of Pfc. Lori Ann Peistawa, a 23-year-old mother of two. Regardless of the controversy surrounding women serving in combat or high-risk units, Penny Calder (2003) argues that ôDespite the traditional view of women as nurturers and carers whose role is primarily to keep the home fires burning, there is a long history of female warriors and other women for whom war has been a turning pointö (2). Whether dressing as men during the Civil War or risking their lives to provide support services in high-risk situations, women have sacrificed their lives in war. Women deserve the option to serve their country in combat as excluding them from equal military opportunities with men is discriminatory.
There are a variety of reasons why women deserve the choice to serve their country. Many argue that such a choice is the rightful option of the female gender. Opponents of women serving in combat or high-risk units often claim that women should be excluded from such duties because of being mothers. Many fear women are the last link of a civilized society in times of warfare. However, more than 140,000 women now serves as officers and enlisted personnel in the U.S. military, 16% of the enlisted population (Adeboyejo 2003, 7). Very few casualties have been reported among enlisted women, and feminists argue that womenÆs success in the military is evidence that the naysayers are wrong. As Anne Applebaum declared in the Washing...