THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 15, 1996 TAG: 9608150002
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A18 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: By GARY REESE
LENGTH: 69 lines
I disagree with Michael F. Cohen (``VMI decision defeats common sense,'' Another View, Aug. 7). The Supreme Court's decision to require the admission of women to VMI was neither a victory for special interests nor a defeat for common sense. It was a reaffirmation of our constitutional guarantees of equality of treatment before the law. It is inappropriate for a tax-supported institution to deny admission to an otherwise-qualified applicant based solely on gender.
Anyone is free to express an opinion as to what women can't do or shouldn't be allowed to do, but societal changes have made the questions moot regarding public institutions.
Unfortunately, Cohen's commentary seemed to be less a critique on the admission of women to VMI and The Citadel than a critique of women in the military. This seems particularly true since only a small proportion of VMI and Citadel graduates join the military after graduation.
As a graduate of the Naval Academy (before women), I once considered the admission of women to the Brigade of Midshipmen to be unacceptable. But the arguments against their admission were (and continue to be) purely emotional.
Did the Naval Academy establish lower physical standards for women? No. The standards are certainly different, but not lower, in relative terms. Do men and women compete against each other at Wimbledon or the Olympic Games? There must be a reason. Did the Naval Academy change the Plebe indoctrination system? Yes, but not necessarily because of women. It was abusive and unnecessarily dehumanizing.
The Naval Academy program still successfully transforms a civilian into a member of the Brigade. Did it cost a large sum of money to accommodate women? Yes, it was expensive, but so is any renovation of a 100-year-old building. A billion dollars? No.
Were the service academies changed by the admission of women? Yes. Were they ruined? Anyone is entitled to an opinion on that.
Cohen implies that the admission of women to service academies has resulted in the graduation of inferior officers. In fact, because of greater competition for fewer billets, the average woman admitted to any particular class of midshipmen tends to be better-qualified than the average male. Over four years, this translates to a higher percentage of women at the top of the class.
Is there something substandard about a woman's military service because she served in a time of peace? All recent graduates, male and female, have graduated in a time of relative peace. Do we anticipate a difference in leadership and management ability between a male and a female surface line officer who attain the rank of admiral, both having had equal opportunities in command and assignments, but neither having served in battle?
Cohen places the cost of having women in the service at billions of dollars and asserts that careers of senior officers have been destroyed over trivial issues. Tailhook, sexual harassment, adultery, fraternization and abuse of power are not trivial issues. Yes, some male personnel have been unfairly punished, but the majority of recent ``casualties'' have resulted from the officers' clear lack of judgment and character.
Women will eventually attend VMI and The Citadel. The institutions will change, for better or for worse.
Women will struggle in that environment, both initially and for years to come. They will be singled out and harassed. The first groups of women graduates will be ignored by the alumni. Sister Rat doesn't ring as does Brother Rat. The schools will have growing pains as they make the institutional changes necessary to accommodate women.
Be patient - it will take a generation or more for women to become accepted by the Citadel and VMI communities. Regardless, we are a nation founded on equality of treatment before the law. The bottom line in this debate is the equal access of all taxpayers to a tax-supported educational institution. MEMO: Gary Reese lives in Virginia Beach. by CNB