Women have found ways to contribute to battles they were not allowed to fight in throughout United States History, from feeding the troops and treating the wounded during the American Revolution to operating switchboards and telephones during World War I. Throughout the 20th century, individual branches of the Armed Forces and the Department of Defense adopted policies to allow women to serve in capacities from which they had previously been barred.
 
Despite the fact that more than 40,000 women were deployed to combat zones during the Gulf War, it was not until 2013 that the Department of Defense announced the end of the direct combat exclusion for female service members. Finally, on December 3, 2015, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that all combat roles, across all branches of the Armed Forces would be open to women.
 
Because of this revision in policy, there are now around 3,800 women in frontline Army combat roles, 700 in Marine Corps combat roles, and 730 in the Naval submarine force. For these reasons and more, we will be introducing a resolution to commemorate the 10th anniversary of all combat jobs being open to women.
 
While there is still work to be done to make service safer and more accessible to brave volunteers from across our country, please join us in recognizing the efforts of the Armed Forces to recruit, train, and promote the most highly skilled and qualified service members through their ranks, regardless of their sex.