The military situation in Iraq has filled our daily newscasts
with story after story of families affected by war. Whether the
images are of tearful goodbyes as soldiers depart for foreign
lands, or joyful returns from a tour of duty, many of them share a
common thread. The soldiers tend to be younger men, often leaving
or returning to their wives and young children.
So, it can be easy to forget these days that many female
soldiers also put themselves in harm's way. Although they are still
typically barred from hand-to-hand combat situations, women make up
15% of the U.S. military and now see more combat action than ever
before. Recent polling shows a majority of the American public
believes female soldiers should have the opportunity to serve
combat assignments on the same terms as men.
According to a Dec. 5-7 Gallup Poll*, just 16% of Americans
think women in the armed services should never receive combat
assignments on the same terms as men, while 45% think they should
receive combat assignments only if they elect to. Almost all the
rest -- nearly 4 in 10 (38%) -- think women should get
combat assignments on the same terms as men. All told, more than 8
in 10 Americans think women should either have the opportunity, or
be required, to serve the same combat assignments as men do.
These findings are consistent with poll results collected during
the Gulf War in February 1991, and after the war in July 1991. In
response to both polls, less than 20% of respondents said that
female soldiers should never get combat assignments.
Men are more likely than women to say female soldiers should
never get combat assignments, 21% to 11%. Also, older Americans are
more likely than younger Americans to think women should never get
combat assignments. Specifically, 22% of Americans age 50 and older
say women should be barred from combat, compared with 14% of 30- to
49-year-olds and just 8% of 18- to 29-year-olds.
Gays in the Military
Gay Americans make up another group whose military participation
has been a source of controversy, particularly since President Bill
Clinton's 1993 announcement of what was called the "Don't Ask,
Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" policy. Despite the political
controversy, Gallup's Dec. 5-7 poll finds public opinion fairly
clear-cut: 79% of Americans believe that openly gay people should
serve in the U.S. military, while just 18% think they should
not.
Liberals are more likely than conservatives to believe gays
should be allowed to serve, 90% to 68%. Younger Americans (who tend
to be more accepting of homosexuality in general) are more likely
than older Americans to approve of gays in the military. But unlike
gay marriage, which divides Americans, gays in the military is
acceptable to the vast majority of all major societal groups.
Bottom Line
As the conflict in Iraq grinds on and the war on terrorism
continues, the military's capacity is stretched and the need for
more soldiers is greater than ever. Americans seem to be saying: If
women and gays want to serve their country, why not let them?
*Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,004
national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted Dec. 5-7, 2003. For
results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say
with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is
±3 percentage points.
