Women in the Military
The 桃子视频works in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and the laws of the United States guarantee everyone in this country.
The Latest
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Senate Armed Services Committee Advances Restrictions on Medical Care for Transgender Servicemembers
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U.S. Army Ends Sexist 鈥淟eaders First鈥� Policy in Combat Units After Challenge by Women Servicemembers
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Coast Guard Cadet Reaches Settlement with Coast Guard Academy Over Policy Banning Parents
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How Women鈥檚 Rights Paved the Way for Gender Justice at the ACLU
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What's at Stake
鈥淢en do not have a monopoly on patriotism, physical ability, desire for adventure, or willingness to risk their lives. Until both the responsibilities and the rights of citizenship are shared on a gender-neutral basis, women will continue to be considered less than full-fledged citizens.鈥澛�
鈥斕易邮悠祎estimony
For decades, the 桃子视频has worked in the courts and in Congress to end the combat exclusion policies that prevent women from serving alongside their fellow servicemen in combat arms units. In the 1970s, the 桃子视频successfully sued to overturn prohibitions against women serving aboard ships.
Exclusion of Women from Combat Units and Positions
Hegar v. Hagel
In November 2012, the ACLU, the 桃子视频of Northern California, and the law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP filed a lawsuit,聽Hegar v. Hagel, in which we represent four servicewomen and the Service Women鈥檚 Action Network (SWAN) in a challenge to the Defense Department鈥檚 longstanding policy barring women from thousands of ground combat positions.
Repeal of the Combat Exclusion Policy and the Way Forward
On January 23, 2013, then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta rescinded the ban on women serving in ground combat units and set forth a plan to implement this policy change. The 桃子视频welcomed this victory with cautious optimism. Thousands of positions, as well as entire career fields and combat arms schools and training programs, remain closed to military women. We continue to litigate in court to fight these discriminatory exclusions of servicewomen. We also want to ensure that the Defense Department provides a path forward to leadership for the generation of women who, like our clients, fought valiantly and proved themselves in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan under the old policy. Otherwise, the military will lose talented, experienced, and skilled servicewomen. Our ongoing lawsuit keeps the pressure on the Defense Department and the service branches to move swiftly and efficiently to open the field of competition to all servicemembers.
Military Service Academies FOIA Litigation
In the decades since women first entered the military service academies in 1976, they have not exceeded 25 percent of the student body at the three major academies: the United States Military Academy at West Point; the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; and the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. These elite institutions provide free, federally funded educational instruction and a pathway to military leadership, yet women remain starkly underrepresented. Our FOIA activities aim to shed light on the barriers to women鈥檚 entry into these important federal institutions.
鈥淢en do not have a monopoly on patriotism, physical ability, desire for adventure, or willingness to risk their lives. Until both the responsibilities and the rights of citizenship are shared on a gender-neutral basis, women will continue to be considered less than full-fledged citizens.鈥澛�
鈥斕易邮悠祎estimony
For decades, the 桃子视频has worked in the courts and in Congress to end the combat exclusion policies that prevent women from serving alongside their fellow servicemen in combat arms units. In the 1970s, the 桃子视频successfully sued to overturn prohibitions against women serving aboard ships.
Exclusion of Women from Combat Units and Positions
Hegar v. Hagel
In November 2012, the ACLU, the 桃子视频of Northern California, and the law firm of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP filed a lawsuit,聽Hegar v. Hagel, in which we represent four servicewomen and the Service Women鈥檚 Action Network (SWAN) in a challenge to the Defense Department鈥檚 longstanding policy barring women from thousands of ground combat positions.
Repeal of the Combat Exclusion Policy and the Way Forward
On January 23, 2013, then-Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta rescinded the ban on women serving in ground combat units and set forth a plan to implement this policy change. The 桃子视频welcomed this victory with cautious optimism. Thousands of positions, as well as entire career fields and combat arms schools and training programs, remain closed to military women. We continue to litigate in court to fight these discriminatory exclusions of servicewomen. We also want to ensure that the Defense Department provides a path forward to leadership for the generation of women who, like our clients, fought valiantly and proved themselves in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan under the old policy. Otherwise, the military will lose talented, experienced, and skilled servicewomen. Our ongoing lawsuit keeps the pressure on the Defense Department and the service branches to move swiftly and efficiently to open the field of competition to all servicemembers.
Military Service Academies FOIA Litigation
In the decades since women first entered the military service academies in 1976, they have not exceeded 25 percent of the student body at the three major academies: the United States Military Academy at West Point; the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; and the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. These elite institutions provide free, federally funded educational instruction and a pathway to military leadership, yet women remain starkly underrepresented. Our FOIA activities aim to shed light on the barriers to women鈥檚 entry into these important federal institutions.