by Richard H. Kohn

About the author: Richard H. Kohn chairs the Curriculum in Peace, War, and Defense at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is the editor of The United States Military Under the Constitution of the United States, 1789– 1989 and a former president of the Society for Military History.

Bill Clinton’s promise to end the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the military, and the continuing furor over women in combat, threaten an ongoing civil-military battle that could damage military professionalism, alienate an otherwise friendly incoming Administration, and, ultimately, ruin the military effectiveness of the American armed forces for the foreseeable future. Military leaders who oppose these changes ought to consider some facts and principles that might change their minds.

Reasons to Change

First, history. Women have fought...