I served in the U.S. Army as a Military Police Woman from 1985 through 1987.

Let me pass on some of the highlights.  At Fort McClellan, Alabama, I was in basic and advanced training with three platoons of men and one of females.  Many of the men resented having to keep (slower) pace with the women on ruck marches and PT runs.  Then there were the few men who were very protective of us and treated us like little sisters, attempting to help carry our share of the load as much as the drill sergeants would let them.  They often did this to the detriment of what would be their own safety if it were actually a war time situation as opposed to a training exercise.

At my first duty station in Nürnberg, Germany, I was the only female in our military field office.  I was openly pursued for dates, companionship, and other activities.  It was nice to be so popular, even though I was fully aware that I had an unfair advantage.  I lived in an all-male barracks.  I had my own wing of the building to myself, but the rec. room was down that hallway, so I really didn’t have any privacy.  I also had to deal with the hurt feelings and anger when I turned down their amorous offers.  One male soldier in particular decided to take out a vendetta against me for turning him down.  He made my life hell for about three months until he found a German girlfriend.  My NCOIC (my boss) regularly propositioned me and offered me favors if I would keep him warm in his sleeping bag when we went to the field.  He had a really nice Catholic wife and two small children.

I started keeping company with another sergeant in our company.  I found that when I was recognized as “his woman,” all harassment ceased.  I was really nice to just do my job without all the games.  Then I got pregnant.  My boss “encouraged” me to get out of the military because he would not give me any slack for having a child and would in fact go out of his way to ensure that I got all the temporary duty he could throw at me (weeks or months at a job where family members couldn’t follow).  I took a maternity discharge two weeks after I had my son and married the father of my baby.  I found that I loved being an Army wife; it was a fulfilling lifestyle.  After ten years, the father of my baby found another young female solder to help him warm in his sleeping bag and we divorced.

Granted, some things have changed in the military since my time there, but I don’t think human nature and male/ female dynamics have changed all that much in 25 years.