Top 5 Hopes for Women in the Military in 2010

2010 is fast upon us. It's a time for resolutions, but since I never keep those, I am going to make something that I can keep. A list of hopes.

I have hopes that the military and the Armed Forces Committee will get their collective acts together and do some basic things in the name of equality and human dignity in 2010.

President Obama, please take note.

My top five hopes for the military in 2010:

1. Repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell and UCMJ Article 125: Men and women in the military should be able to serve proudly, love whom they choose, marry or have a civil union, raise children, and have protections for all of those things legally. Trusting that our men and women in uniform are the professionals that we have trained them to be is something that needs to happen now. Tell Congress DADT needs to go. Furthermore, UCMJ Article 125, which makes "unnatural carnal copulation" (oral and anal sex) punishable by court martial, needs to be repealed to make sure that the military's law is updated accordingly.

2. Full Integration of Women into Career Paths: Women have been serving in aspects of the military that the world thinks are revolutionary, and only now are we discussing how to put them there formally. I have hopes that in the coming year women will be recognized for the work they do in combat. I hope that all career paths will be opened up to women who are willing and able, so that they can advance and earn awards that their male counterparts have already been recognized for.

3. Reproductive Choices Protected for Women in Uniform: I want Plan B available in all MTFs, guaranteed. I want Congress to address the gap in the funding ban that leaves service women and dependents without access to abortion services. I want military hospitals to guarantee that pregnant uniformed women will be allowed to refuse that Pitocin or that C-section if they want to. Putting on your uniform should not erase the autonomy over your body.

4. Better Veterans Affairs Facilities for Women: I want to see an updating of current facilities to accommodate the privacy needs of women veterans today. More attention is needed for veterans with invisible disabilities, including therapy groups addressing their specific needs. Make the existing facilities accessible, remembering that public transportation won't help all vets. I want to see more facilities that address the needs of homeless women with children, knowing that there are currently only 11 in the whole country.

5. A Safer Work Environment: The military can be a dangerous job, and we should do everything we can to make sure that the people within its structure at least feel safe with each other. Chains of Command should take reports of threats seriously. They should do everything in their power to make victims of rape and sexual assault feel that they can report crimes without repercussion. They should investigate reports of hostility seriously to ensure that those responsible are held accountable. The military needs to stop being a victim blamer.

While I am not holding my breath, I am hoping that some or all of these things will be addressed in the coming year so that our military can be on its way to being the great force that we purport it to be.

Photo: DVIDSHUB's photostream on Flickr