Women in Combat

More than 130 American women in military service have died in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. More than 800 women have been wounded. Women make up almost 15 percent of the 1.4 million Americans on active military status and many are regularly engaged in combat activities as part of their service.

Leon Panetta, the defense secretary, said that women have proved themselves in and out of battle. In February, the Defense Department opened up more positions to women, especially for tank mechanics and field artillery radar operators. And yet, the department continues to bar women from direct combat, especially in the large Army and Marine units like infantry and special operations. It is past time to repeal this discriminatory policy.

A suit filed recently by Command Sgt. Maj. Jane Baldwin and Col. Ellen Haring of the Army Reserve could help hasten its end. They argue that the policy, based solely on gender, violates equal protection and is unconstitutional. Their complaint makes a compelling case that this discrimination has unfairly restricted their opportunities for career advancement and higher earnings and pensions.

The exclusion of women from some positions also profoundly alters the makeup of the military’s upper ranks, where formal combat experience is valued. Sergeant Major Baldwin has served in South Korea, Germany and Iraq in 25 years of service. She was banned from applying for a position to help create a new Army Reserve unit because it was called a combat job. Colonel Haring, a West Point graduate with 28 years of service, changed her specialty from the Signal Corps in mid-career so she could support special operations. But because of the policy excluding women, she hasn’t been able to get the experience required for the jobs she seeks.

While standing by the exclusionary policy, the Army circumvents it by “attaching” women to combat units instead of actually assigning them, the complaint says, with “no practical difference.” Reports commissioned by Congress have called for the Defense Department and military services to stop this hypocrisy and change the rules to reflect the reality of women serving in combat. That change would not make up for the opportunities lost to Sergeant Major Baldwin and Colonel Haring earlier in their careers. But it would create a stronger military, one that allows women to compete for all jobs based on merit.