How does this policy look in action? An air defender who spent the last two years as a first sergeant in a unit that did not deploy and before that, served in recruiting for three years, qualifies to serve as SMSI. This policy also excludes other non-combat arms leaders who may have more relevant leadership and operational experience than their combat arms counterparts. The pipeline to produce women of sufficient rank and experience within combat arms is lengthy, which means combat arms women won’t fill these positions for nearly another decade. The policy prohibiting women from serving in combat arms branches was fully rescinded in 2016, just four years ago. However, the Army lacks senior women in these ranks due to our own policies that existed since the redcoats and colonial militia first exchanged gunfire at Lexington and Concord. However, we must allow non-combat arms NCOs to fill these critical leadership positions– which have high selection rates for promotion and US Army Sergeants Major Academy attendance– to ensure sufficient representation of senior women leaders to influence the next generation of Army officers.Īll 274 of these positions at universities and colleges throughout the United States are coded combat arms. The scarcity of senior NCO women currently available to fill these positions is due to the nascent policy permitting their service in combat arms. This prohibition stems from the codification of combat-arms MOS for all SMSI positions within USACC. As ironic as that may seem, the Army has a habit of not vetting those individuals in sensitive roles meant to protect Soldiers but rather blindly assigns them into these roles.The views represented herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the DoD or its components.īy Cassie Crosby Due to selection bias for combat-arms noncommissioned officers, women are functionally prohibited from serving as Senior Military Science Instructors (SMSI), the senior noncommissioned officer position in an Army ROTC battalion within US Army Cadet Command (USACC). This staff sergeant was the unit’s representative in the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention (SHARP) unit. For example, the latest incident to make the news was when a non-commissioned officer sent to prison for recruiting lower enlisted female Soldiers into his prostitution ring on Fort Hood. The military is not lacking when it comes to sexual predators. However, joining a combat arms unit will only increase opportunities and add risk for predatory type behavior within a unit that in not accustomed to women. Female combat arms Soldiers will have to protect themselves just as all females do in the military. The biggest unintended consequence will be the increased opportunities for sexual assault and rape. Nineteen female Soldiers made history, April 20, when they began the first gender-integrated Ranger Course assessment. Kristen Griest, middle, carries a fellow Soldier as part of combative training during the Ranger Course on Fort Benning, Ga. I am primarily talking about the targeting of the newly enlisted E1-E4s and impressionable females filling the ranks of combat units. When women start to complete their MOS training and are assigned to their prospective units, I anticipate seeing more of this type of behavior.
The military is already plagued with prostitution rings, sex tapes, pornography, and sexual assaults and rape before allowing women in traditional male roles. If you can imagine it, it probably has happened. However, as the new policy from this announcement catches up to actually being implemented not later than Apthere will be unintended consequences that have not been discussed.Īs a former company level officer, I have to tell you that Soldiers in garrison and those deployed overseas keep their leadership busy from general shenanigans and fuckery to serious criminal activity. If they qualify and want the job then allow them to serve their country in that capacity.
My personal feelings on the matter are similar to that of Secretary Carter.
As a woman who served in the military, I am not writing this article to stand up for women’s rights or to stand behind their physical and mental capabilities to fight alongside their male counterparts.
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