Women in combat? Been there

LITTLE FALLS – When people ask Staff Sgt. Amity Marver if she's happy about women getting to serve in more combat roles in the military, she chuckles.

Marver spent nearly two years on an extended tour in Iraq, where as a truck commander, driver and gunner, she helped provide security for convoys delivering food and supplies.

Marver came under attack multiple times and suffered a concussion and hearing loss when her vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb. She is one of 50 women in the Minnesota National Guard to earn a combat action badge honoring those who were engaged by the enemy.

At an event Wednesday at Camp Ripley to celebrate Women's Equality Day, Marver noted that women have been quietly serving in combat roles for years.

"It's just not something that's publicized," she said.

Still, Marver and many other female service members have been watching closely as the nation's military debates expanding the role of women in combat.

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In 2013, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta lifted the ban on women serving in ground combat roles and established a review process. The Army and other branches of the military must decide by the end of the year what combat roles women will be allowed to fill.

Earlier this month, two women became the first to graduate from the Army's elite Ranger School, a grueling course that pushes soldiers to physical and mental limits. It was opened to women for the first time this year.

Marver followed the two women's progress closely and called it "very important."

"It gives us a wider variety of jobs we can do," she said. "It's opening the doors for more promotions, more opportunities, skill sets."

As of May, women made up about 15 percent of active duty personnel in the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service.

A total of 161 women have lost their lives and 1,015 had been wounded in action as part of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the report.

Still, some combat roles have been out of reach for women, making them less likely to be considered for promotions and higher ranks.

Col. Johanna Clyborne, commander of the 347th Regional Support Group headquartered in Roseville, is an exception. She is the first female brigade commander in the Minnesota Army National Guard.

Gender equality in the military has been hotly debated since the Revolutionary War, Clyborne noted.

The 2013 repeal of the prohibition of women in combat shattered one of the few remaining barriers, she said, but it only put into law what commanders in the field had already been doing since the start of the Gulf War.

Female soldiers make up 17 percent of the Army National Guard, a 12 percent increase from 2011, Clyborne said. Women are being selected "at an exponential rate" for leadership positions historically reserved for men, she said.

"We must continue to push ourselves beyond our comfort zones — challenge our thoughts and our stereotypes," Clyborne said.

Spc. Kiara Stapleton of Minneapolis, a human resources specialist in the 347th, has served in the National Guard for six years. She spent a year in Kuwait from 2011-12.

Stapleton said she's had great examples of women leaders like Clyborne, whose actions speak louder than words.

"There are female soldiers every day who prove that they are just as good at their jobs and their duties as male soldiers, and that gender is not something that hinders any soldier from carrying out their duties," Stapleton said.

Still, without access to all combat duties, female soldiers may not feel they have the opportunities for the same recognition as men, Stapleton said. She called the news of the women passing the Army Ranger training "exciting."

"It's one more step forward in the right direction for female service members," Stapleton said.

But while female soldiers are moving up the ranks of the National Guard, women still don't have equal rights under the law, said keynote speaker Trista Matascastillo, a former Marine and military police commander in the Minnesota National Guard. Matascastillo now works on behalf of women veterans and on gender equality issues and is chair of the Minnesota Women Veterans Initiative Working Group.

Some women are still afraid to tell their supervisor they are pregnant for fear of losing their job or being questioned about mission readiness, Matascastillo said. Some struggle with being passed over for promotions, or with the impact of domestic abuse or sexual assault, she said.

"From the standpoint of status, opportunities and rights, women are still a sizable disadvantage to men across the board," Matascastillo said.

Follow Kirsti Marohn on Twitter @kirstimarohn or reach her by phone at 255-8746.