Ever since I joined the Air Force (and probably a good 5-10 years before), a great deal has been written about the high prevalence of sexual assault and rape in the military and at the military academies. In fact I still recall the story of Jamie Jones and her testimony before the House Judiciary Committee about being raped in Iraq. It is a very real problem. I also think that it is a problem that Commanders and DoD leaders at every level take incredibly seriously and have been doing everything within their power to address. I would even argue that some of the new steps being taken (Congressionally mandated and/or DoD self-imposed) are inadvisable overreach.
I am still on the front end of my deployment, but when I go to bed tonight I will be the only female on the COP. And I am completely comfortable with that. I have been treated with nothing but respect and professionalism by the soldiers I am currently serving with, from the BSO and company commanders down to the young privates I am getting to know as we roll around in MATVs talking about hometowns and college football ("ND has a great recruiting class ma'am."..."Yes, but something happens when we actually make them go to class...we'll see"). I would characterize myself as more of a media defender than basher, but I would hope that the intense spotlight on this issue does not deter women from serving in the military. We need more women in the military like we need more women in government, research labs, big business, and tenured professorships. And to bring it back around -- like Afghanistan needs more women as participants in EVERY aspect of its society.
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