by Katey van Dam
Katey van Dam identifies, assesses, and refutes the validity of arguments against the full integration of gender into the Untied States armed services. She calls attention to the abundance of emotional arguments against opening combat positions to women and the dearth of evidence supporting these claims. Drawing from the experiences of women service members in combat, van Dam highlights the important contributions women are already making to ensure their nation's security and argues that opening combat positions and occupational specialties will enhance the training of women service members and increase the military's pool of qualified candidates.
This article is the first in a series published by War on the Rocks, and the full article can be accessed here.
About the Author
Katey van Dam is an active duty Marine attack helicopter pilot and a long-standing member of the Combat Integration Initiative.
.