Women At The Naval Academy
The Naval Academy first accepted women as Midshipmen in 1976, when Congress authorized the admission of women to all of the service academies. Women comprise about 22 percent of entering plebes. They pursue the same academic and professional training as do their male classmates, except that certain physical aptitude standards for women are lower than for men, mirroring the standards of the Navy itself. Women have most recently composed about 17 percent of each graduating class, however this number continues to rise. The first pregnant midshipman graduated in 2009. While regulations expressly forbade this, the woman was able to receive a waiver from the Department of the Navy.
In 2006, Michelle J. Howard, class of 1982, became the first female graduate of the Naval Academy to be selected for admiral; she was also the first admiral from her class. Margaret D. Klein, class of 1981, became the first female Commandant of Midshipmen in December 2006.
Following the 2003 U.S. Air Force Academy sexual assault scandal and due to concern with sexual assault in the U.S. military the Department of Defense was required to establish a task force to investigate sexual harassment and assault at the United States military academies in the law funding the military for fiscal 2004. The report, issued 25 August 2005 showed that during 2004 50% of the women at Annapolis reported instances of sexual harassment while 99 incidents of sexual assault were reported. There had been an earlier incident in 1990 which involved male midshipmen chaining a female midshipman to a urinal after she threw a snowball at him and then taking pictures of her.
Academy Superintendent Vice Admiral Rodney Rempt issued a statement: "With the benefit of the Defense Task Force's assessment and recommendations, we will continue to strive to establish a climate which encourages reporting of these incidents, so we can support the victim and deal with allegations fairly and appropriately. The very idea that any member of the Naval Academy family could be part of an environment that fosters sexual harassment, misconduct, or even assault is of great concern to me, and it is contrary to all we are trying to do and achieve. Preventing and deterring this unacceptable behavior is a leadership issue that I and all the Academy leaders take to heart. The public trusts that the Service Academies will adhere to the highest standards and that we will serve as beacons that exemplify character, dignity and respect. We will increase our efforts to meet that trust." Superintendent Rempt has recently been criticized for not allowing former Navy quarterback Lamar Owens to graduate, despite his acquittal on a rape charge. Some alumni have attributed this to an overeagerness on Rempt's part to placate critics urging a crackdown on sexual assault and harassment.
In 1979, James H. Webb published a provocative essay opposing the integration of women at the Naval Academy titled "Women Can't Fight." Webb was an instructor at the Naval Academy in 1979 when he wrote the article for Washingtonian magazine that was critical of women in combat and of them attending the service academies. The article, in which he referred to the dorm at the Naval Academy that housed 4,000 men and 300 women as "a horny woman's dream," was written three years after the Academy admitted women. Webb said he did not write the headline.
On 7 November 2006, Webb was elected to the U.S. Senate from Virginia. His election opponent, then senator George Allen, raised the 1979 article as a campaign issue, depicting Webb as being opposed to women in military service. Webb's response read in part, "I am completely comfortable with the roles of women in today's military.... To the extent that my writings subjected women at the Academy or the active armed forces to undue hardship, I remain profoundly sorry." In a political advertisement for Allen five female graduates of the United States Naval Academy said the article helped foster an air of hostility and harassment towards females within the academy.
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