On July 24, the House Armed Services Military Personnel Subcommittee held a hearing, “Women in Service Reviews.” Chair Joe Wilson (R-SC), Ranking Member Susan Davis (D-CA) and members of the subcommittee heard testimony regarding continued efforts to integrate women into positions that previously were unavailable to them. In January, former secretary of Defense Leon Panetta ended the ban on direct ground combat roles for women. In addition, then-Secretary Panetta announced that all unnecessary gender-based restrictions on military service should be eliminated.
Rep. Davis said, “Opening positions and units to women to ensure that the best qualified are chosen, not based solely on their gender, but on their capabilities and experience, will help to ensure that our military remains the best in the world. Women want to ensure that they have equal opportunities to serve and excel into higher leadership positions and not be held back because they are prohibited from serving in specific fields. They do not want the rules and requirements to be different because they are women. What they want is a fair and open opportunity. The elimination of the ground combat policy is the first step toward that equality.”
Rear Admiral Barbara Sweredoski, reserve deputy, Military Personnel Plans and Policy, United States Navy, said, “Navy’s plan is a continuation of our efforts over the past 19 years to steadily expand opportunities for women…In the past two years, we have started assigning women officers to submarines. We have also been assigning women to elements of our Coastal Riverine Forces for the past four years. Navy is fully committed to equal professional opportunities for all uniformed personnel. Currently, over 88 percent of all Navy billets are open to females, a result of deliberate and steady review and expansion of opportunities for females. After submitting our intent to the Office of the Secretary of Defense for congressional notification, Navy will continue our expansion of opportunity in a thoughtful and deliberate manner. Our goal is to continue to ensure all men and women in the Department of the Navy have the opportunity to succeed and are set up for success with viable career paths while preserving our war-fighting capability.”
Major General Bennet S. Sacolick, director of Force Management and Development, United States Special Operations Command, said, “The question for the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), and focus of our analysis, is whether we can combine women into those Special Operations units whose occupation often requires deploying in small self-contained teams for long periods of time in austere, geographically isolated locations. Many of these units deploy in close proximity to, or behind, enemy lines as they live and work in very close quarters with each other. Can we achieve this level of integration while preserving our unit readiness, cohesion, and morale?…I want to reiterate that we are not predisposed to any particular course of action, and, at this time, absolutely no decisions have been made regarding integration. We are, however, committed to maintaining the highest standards and delivering the most qualified Special Operations Forces (SOF) operators in support of our nation, regardless of gender.”
The following witnesses also testified:
