The Military in United States of America
The military in the United States of America has gone through great evolution making a major societal presence now whereby it was a small institution once. The armed forces have turned out as the largest employer in the country. Moreover, just like what is easily observable in the nation’s history, the military composition still reflects the racial, ethnic, sexual, social, economical and religious diversity (Segal & Segal, 2004).
As the military is hiearchal in nature, the major portion of it has always consisted on male youth. The institution needed physical fitness so it preferred younger people, whether male or female. The age limit for men was seventeen and twenty-five for women. However, the women were restricted to a small number of related jobs. Although, gender integration began after the 1973 end of conscription. Again, the women were not considered to be employed largely. On the other hand, their role considerable expanded during wars and combats as launderes, nurses and cooks. In the similar fashion, the historical composition of US military involved a greater number of Blacks and Hispanics as compared to the white population. At the same time, Blacks were not considered for any higher officer ranks despite the fact that their participation was far better than the whites. In the 18th century, there were a major number of men belonging to different European backgrounds who served in forces and they also experienced the same treatment as Blacks. Moreover, the United States military was served by a great number of immigrants and their children, particularly white ethnics (Germans, Mexicans etc.). As far as the religion is concerned, the Protestants’ participation in the military services was fairly larger than other religious groups in the United States. It is also important to mention here that young men were required to take permission to marry as the institution always preferred young single men (Segal & Segal, 2004).
References
Segal, D. R., & Segal, M. W. (2004). America’s Military Population. Population Bulletin , 59(04). Retrieved November 15, 2013, from http://www.prb.org/source/acf1396.pdf
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