Women Training Iraqi Soldiers and Police in Iraq

Imagine Miss Universe standing in front of ten Iraqi soldiers teaching them how to search a vehicle for improvised explosive devices. Are they paying attention to her or her beauty? Has Miss Universe received proper training, to include cultural awareness training to put her on the same playing field as her male counterparts? Is she culturally aware of her surroundings? Women today are capable and effective when training Iraqi soldiers and police and all they need are the proper tools. Today women make up approximately 13.14% of our Armed Forces where approximately 220,000 jobs are closed due to a policy excluding women from direct combat positions. Women filling support roles are finding themselves on the front lines fighting a three front war. Military requirements in Iraq have placed women in new missions for which their equally based training has not prepared them.