Marine Sgt. Sheena Adams stands guard in Afghanistan on November 18, 2010.… (Paula Bronstein, Getty…)
On Thursday, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced that the military would lift its policy against women in combat roles. The change has many supporters, including President Barack Obama, members of Congress and female soldiers, but plenty of critics, who say women cannot meet the fitness standards of male soldiers. Addressing the issue for The Morning Call are Rebecca Sullum, an Allentown native who moved to Israel and served in a combat unit with the Israeli Defense Force; and conservative commentator John Brinson of Breinigsville, a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Q. Should women be assigned combat roles?
A. There is a big difference between the U.S. military, which is voluntary, and the Israeli Defense Force, which is a mandatory draft. In the case of the U.S., I believe women should have the right to choose to which unit they are assigned to as long as they can fulfill their role in the unit. I don't think women should be drafted into combat roles against their will.
In Israel today there is an inequality, since men can be drafted into a combat unit and women can choose. I think that maybe in another 10 years, once combat women become more common, women can be drafted to the combat units.
Q. Can you speak a little to your experience in the military?
A. I chose to take part in the first Israeli co-ed combat unit. At the time it was an experimental program to see if women would be able to take on combat roles. The unit that I joined was around 80 percent women and 20 percent men.
The months of training were the physically most strenuous time of my life. From daily runs, to nighttime hikes in full gear — every day was a challenge. It seemed to be that the challenge was equally difficult for both men and women in the unit. There wasn't anybody that prior to the unit was used to these physical challenges. We all pulled through it together.
I especially remember the long hours spent at the firing range. Every time I used my M16 rifle I thought, "This gun can kill." I would then pray that I wouldn't ever have to use it. Many fellow female soldiers also felt the immense responsibility we were given. Unlike many 18-year-old males, the female soldiers were more mature, responsible and thoughtful.
After training we were we sent to patrol Israel's southern borders.
Q. Were women treated as equals? What sort of frictions arose?
A. I can only speak about women in my unit, who I think were considered to be equals. I am certain that in every part of the IDF, as in any other military, each unit has different gender relations. I think that in the IDF the main reason for inequality isn't gender-based but rather based on your rank and the unit you served in the defense force. Within the Israeli society, the highest respect is given to people who are part of combat units.
In my unit, the main source of gender friction was between the officers and female soldiers. This friction was one of many teenagers, based on "crushes" and sexual tensions. During the first months of training these frictions either didn't exist or were dormant.
Only once we headed off to the outposts on the southern border of Israel did these romances begin. Many of these relationships could have grown out of boredom. Imagine spending weeks in the desert with a small group of people. Every day is routine, guarding, lay out for ambushes, patrols, kitchen duty and sleeping. There was no television, no cellular phones, all we had was a group of soldiers between the ages of 18 and 22 confined in a small base.
Even though there were romances, they didn't affect the professionalism of the unit.
Q. Did the experience of serving in the army with the potential of facing combat change you in any fundamental way? Did it lead you into the peacemaking role you hold now?
A. Today I am the co-director, along with a Palestinian man, of an interfaith organization, Kids4Peace, in Israel and Palestine that brings together Jewish, Christian and Muslim youth for peace education and conflict resolution.
My military experiences led me to understand the importance of nonviolence in order to create a peaceful society. During my two years in the combat unit, I would often think to myself during my long hours on guard duty overlooking the Egyptian desert, if I would climb down from my post right now, will the Egyptian soldier do the same? Am I here because he is there or is he there because I am here?
At age 13, Allentown native Rebecca Sullum moved to Israel, where military service is compulsory. When she reached conscription age, 18, she chose to join the first co-ed combat unit in the Israeli Defense Force. Sullum lives in Jerusalem, where she is co-director of an interfaith peace organization. In an e-mail interview, she offered her thoughts on her own experience as a female soldier.