As an army brat, I have very idealistic views of our military. My dad always encouraged my sister and I to attend one of the academies and pursue a career in the military, but neither of us obliged him. Personally, I had seen the military lifestyle firsthand and did not want to live it for the rest of my life or put my family through it. Despite the War in Iraq, both of my parents would have wholeheartedly supported a decision to make that my career. The simple fact that my dad always condoned going into the service makes reading articles about the hardships women go through shocking. Particularly because my dad and all of his coworkers that I have met have never shown anything but respect for women, it is sometimes even hard to believe. The facts don't lie though, and for every man in the military who respects women, there could easily be another who does not.

Steven Lee Myers' article, "Living and Fighting Alongside Men, and Fitting In," detailed some of the troubles female soldiers face but essentially concluded that women are making major strides and have had a positive impact on our armed forces. His other article, "A Peril in War Zones: Sexual Abuse by Fellow G.I.'s" does not have the same relatively positive tone. As I read the article, I was shocked at the statement, "A woman in the military is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq." These women are in a difficult spot because they feel that in reporting sexual harassment, they are jeopardizing the efficiency of their missions. They feel that it can take the focus off of the goal at hand. "So it's kind of like that one little thing is nothign compared with 'There is an I.E.D. that went off in this convoy today and three people were injured.'" These women are told to put their country first, so it is incredibly hard for them to worry about themselves and their rights as women. Additionally, depening on the rank of the person committing the assault, these female soldiers could be jeopardizing their careers if they file reports. It is sad that so many of these strong, confident, and brave women are forced to simply, "Drive on."

I felt that Steinem's "Supremacy Crimes" tied in nicely with "A Peril in War Zones: Sexual Abuse by Fellow G.I." I can definitely see how women encroaching on men's previous superiority in the military could be cause for the current sexual harassment problem. The military was once completely male-dominated, and with women rising higher and higher in the ranks, men are feeling threatened. They are now, in some cases, forced to take orders from the "weaker" sex. White men, in general, are threatened by minorities encroaching on what was once their territory in all aspects of life. I do think it is interesting, given these statistics, African Americans are considered the violent ones, when white men are responsible for the highest percentage of hate crimes and mass killings. Perhaps this is because white men control the media, and thus, the information that is accessible to us? It all comes back to the patriarchy we live in.

Crenshaw's article, "Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color," was very powerful. The issue of silencing certain statistics and issues so as to prevent the further enforcement of stereotypes is perpetuating so many problems. Instead of considering short-term stigmas, long term results must take precedence. I think, as Crenshaw concludes, that being aware of intersectionality is the most important thing. It is nearly impossible to give any one person a single identity, so we all must be aware of our differences and how they privilege and marginalize us.