Women have recently been granted the right to fight in combat. With that change, debate has sparked over whether it’s right or wrong.
Sally Caspers, who served in the Air Force and is the coordinator for the Office of Veteran Services at Sinclair Community College said although she has never been in a combat situation, she feels the military has never suffered by allowing more people to contribute in any way.
“People who want to contribute, should get to contribute if they can do the work,” she said. “Not every woman will want to and not every woman will be able to, but I don’t think that’s the argument being made. I think the argument being made is if they can and they want to, they should be able to. Because who knows what skills you might be missing out on and it’s an acknowledgment on the way war has changed.”
Some men feel the same way.
“We’re just naturally a patriotic country and we’re definitely protective of women, but if you’re getting paid the same thing I’m getting paid and that’s what you want to do, drive on,” Brett Mack, an assistant in the VA work study student and retired veteran said. Caspers feels that it’s a shift in thinking.
“Instead of it being a ‘no’ all the time and finding exceptions, it’s a ‘yes’ unless the unit can say why not,” she said.
She feels that it’s dangerous not to acknowledge that women are in combat.
“Let’s admit women are in combat, at least at some level, so they are trained and equipped so that they don’t come into harms way,” she said. “I really think it’s more dangerous to not admit it, at least at some level, because then they’re unprepared. They’re a danger to themselves and they could be a danger to their teammates that expect them to contribute.”
Caspers said with the recent law change, women serving in combat can now receive recognition for performing above and beyond. Women will also have the chance to move up in the ranks.
“It’s possible,” she said. “Doesn’t mean it’s going to happen or it needs to happen. It’s just possible.”
Caspers said for anyone who has been touched by the military life — whether it’s by previously serving, being a spouse or child of someone who served or is currently serving, the Office of Veteran Services is there to help.
“We try and do our job well so that we’re giving accurate information the first time and we’re thinking about what trouble the student might run into down the line instead of having them come back several times,” she said. “But we’re also a safe space to come in and ask the question you think you ought to know and you don’t.”
Mac said the most beneficial aspect of the office is the information they provide.
“We’re just a rolling information center,” he said.
The office is located in Building 10, Room 3024. For more information, call the office at 512-2745.