In August of 2023, U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) updated its 2021 study, "Breaking Barriers: Women in Army Special Operations."1 According to an Army News Service article, the study "outlined 42 recommendations. to better address obstacles facing female Soldiers serving in special operations units and to retain its top talent," and its "findings will guide USASOC in optimizing female warfighters while noting their physical and anatomical differences." The study's focus group responses highlighted "equipment fitting, childcare, gender bias, social support, sexual harassment, pregnancy and postpartum, and morale and wellbeing." According to the USASOC commander, Lieutenant General Jonathan Braga, "Although disappointed by some of the findings and comments in the study, we are committed to addressing these issues with candor and transparency."
In August of 2023, U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) updated its 2021 study, "Breaking Barriers: Women in Army Special Operations."1 According to an Army News Service article, the study "outlined 42 recommendations. to better address obstacles facing female Soldiers serving in special operations units and to retain its top talent," and its "findings will guide USASOC in optimizing female warfighters while noting their physical and anatomical differences." The study's focus group responses highlighted "equipment fitting, childcare, gender bias, social support, sexual harassment, pregnancy and postpartum, and morale and wellbeing." According to the USASOC commander, Lieutenant General Jonathan Braga, "Although disappointed by some of the findings and comments in the study, we are committed to addressing these issues with candor and transparency."
rid of them because they ll quit in the middle of something. now you have this program i lo v that. so i don t even like to hear anybody whining. i love that you brought that moment up, that you have to do this with support, that it takes a unit and the unit has tobacco sive because critics and naysayers said if you ve got women in a man s unit it won t be the same brethren, won t be the same cohesion. there s a moment that happened earlier where i think it was lieutenant havers, lieutenant shaye havers colleague sitting to the left of hers asked about how hard it was for him and how he said if i weren t for her let me play it for you. let me tell my control room. the soundbite where we have the officer beside lieutenant haver talking about lieutenant haver. let s listen. one night we were doing a long walk. i was the 320 gunner so i had a lot of weight on me and i was
encourage others. you heard lieutenant haver say the mental part was the hardest, even though it included five mile run in under 40 minutes, 12 mile march, 49 pushups, 59 sit jumps, three parachute jumps. what is your reaction when you hair the m hear the mental side was more challenging than the physical? it doesn t surprise me a witness. i ve read up on both of these young officers and i know they re both great athletes in high school and college. being a good athlete is something that gives you a leg up in the military. it s a very physically demanding profession. but these schools like ranger and s.e.a.l. training, they re so demanding physically, but mentally challenge, do you want to give up, keep going. and i heard her say just keep on