Taylor
1
Terance Taylor
Professor Whitton
English 102
03 October 2006
Women in America’s Military Draft
America is the land of freedom and equality for all. It is a place where women
and men of all colors have equal rights and equal say in the government. America has
boasted equality for everyone in all aspects, yet they contradict themselves by
implementing a military draft that excludes females. Women should be included in the
American draft because they are already an active part of our military and equality should
be for all sexes in all aspects.
Women have played some part in our military dating back to the American
Revolution where they played a major role in caring for the sick and injured (Adeboyejo
7). According to Deborah Tannen, “women, as for girls, intimacy is the fabric of
relationships” (386). This caring and nurturing side of women make them great choice
for nursing positions. It wasn’t until recent times that women were allowed to become
more of a part of the military where they are being allowed to serve in active duty
positions. Women are being intertwined so much into the United States military, so why
is it that they are not being included in the military draft?
Women have been fighting for equality since the founding of America, and even
more so since the Civil War. They were finally given the right to vote around the early
1900s. Currently women have the same basic rights and liberties in America that men
do. How can women be allowed to gain equal rights in all these area’s, but manage to
Taylor
2
avoid one of the basic right’s and duties that all American citizens should have to this
country? The one area they are lacking in is the military draft, which they are still being
excluded from. If America is to truly be equal, this is something that should be changed.
Women were traditionally thought of as the one who stays home and takes care of
the kids. This is one factor that has kept women out of the draft. The times are changing
more though, where women aren’t the ones who stay at home as often and there are more
single dads that stay at home.
Women show more helplessness because when they do,
they are not punished or looked down as bad for it (Jacoby 392). Typically men are
thought of to be more physically fit and stronger. This is another factor that has changed
with the times, with more women lifting weights and working out. This leaves some
women that are stronger and more physically fit than some men out there. Another valid
point out there is that of parents. What would happen if both parents would get drafted?
That is simple; they would let one stay at home with the kid or get a guardian for the
child. They draft those in college only if it is really needed, so why not do the same thing
with parents? Have them at the bottom of the list of people to draft.
As the times have changed and with women gaining more rights, it has made
them equal with men on most every aspect. The percentage of females in the military
has also increased with them gaining rights and even serving in active duty positions.
With them having selective equality for only the good things, and them being an intricate
part of the military; it is time for the draft to change with the times and include women in
it.
Taylor
3
Works Cited
Adeboyejo, Betsy. “Women in the Military Face Increasing Opportunity and Risk” The
Crisis, May/June2003:7-8.
Jacoby, Susan. “When Bright Girls Decide That Math Is a ‘Waste of Time’” The
Composition of Everyday Life. Eds. John Metz and John Mauk.
Boston: Thomson Wadsworth, 2004. 390-392.
Tannen, Deborah. “Sex, Lies, and Conversation: Why Is It So Hard for Men and Women
to Talk to Each Other” The Composition of Everyday Life. Eds. John
Metz and John Mauk. Boston: Thomson Wadsworth, 2004. 385-389.