Combat Exclusion Policies: Unequal Protection Under the Law

摘要

Women have been fighting and dying for the United States since the nation was founded. Yet, women are precluded from serving in certain military specialities, positions, and units based solely because of their gender. This paper explores the history of women in the military, as well as the history of current combat exclusion policies, and it ultimately concludes that the current policies will not withstand judicial scrutiny if they are challenged because they likely violate the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment. Finally, the paper advocates the rescission of the current policies and discusses the steps military leaders will need to take to implement a new gender-neutral assignment policy.