Background
2013: On January 24, 2013, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey rescinded this policy following a unanimous recommendation by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
2015. On December 3, after a review period, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter announced that all combat jobs would be opened to women with no exceptions, effective January 2016.
Primary Legal Documents
Dempsey, M. E. (2013, January 9). Women in Service Implementation Plan [Memorandum]. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Department of Defense.
Panetta, L. E., & Dempsey, M. E. (2013, January 24). Memorandum for secretaries of the military departments acting under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness: Elimination of the 1994 Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule. Department of Defense. https://www.defense.gov/
Congressional Documents
Congressional Research Service Reports
Kamarck, K. N. (2015, July 14). Women in combat: Issues for Congress (Report No. R42075). Congressional Research Service. https://sgp.fas.org/crs/natsec/R42075.pdf
U.S. Government Accountability Office. (2015, July). Military personnel: DOD is expanding combat service opportunities for women, but should monitor long-term integration progress. https://www.gao.gov/assets/680/671963.pdf
Congressional Reports and Hearings
U.S. Congress. House of Representatives. (2014). To amend the Federal charter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States to reflect the service of women in the armed forces of the United States (H. Rept. 113-620). U.S. Government Printing Office. https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/113th-congress/house-report/620/1
U.S. Department of Defense. (2012, February). Report to Congress on the review of laws, policies and regulations restricting the service of female members in the U.S. Armed Forces. Department of Defense. https://cmrlink.org/data/sites/85/CMRDocuments/DoD2012ReportreWIC.pdf
Academic and Scholarly Sources
Books
Bristol, D. W., Jr., & Stur, H. M. (Eds.). (2017). Integrating the US military: Race, gender, and sexual orientation since World War II. Johns Hopkins University Press.
Goodman, R. T. (2018). Gender for the warfare state: Literature of women in combat. Routledge.
Greenburg, J. (2024). At war with women: Military humanitarianism and imperial feminism in an era of permanent war. Cornell University Press.
Scholarly Articles on Women in Combat Integration
Belkin, A., Ender, M. G., Frank, N., Furia, S. R., Lucas, G. R., Packard, G., Schultz, T. S., Segal, D. R., & Segal, M. W. (2012). One year out: An assessment of DADT repeal’s impact on military readiness. Palm Center, University of California, Santa Barbara.
Collins, J. M., & Taber, N. (2017). Public discourse about women in combat. Armed Forces & Society, 45(2), 174-199. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095327X17715650
Friedl, K. E. (2005). Biomedical research on health and performance of military women: Accomplishments of the Defense Women’s Health Research Program (DWHRP). Journal of Women’s Health, 14(9), 764-802. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2005.14.764
Goodell, M. B. (2010). Physical-strength rationales for de jure exclusion of women from military combat positions. Seattle University Law Review, 34(1), 17-76. https://digitalcommons.law.seattleu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1960&context=sulr
Harig, C., Kühn, F. P., & Pietz, T. (2022). Local engagement and U.S. military attitudes toward gender integration: Evidence from Afghanistan. International Peacekeeping, 29(5), 631-658. https://doi.org/10.1080/13523260.2024.2391261
King, A. C. (2013). Women in combat. RUSI Journal, 158(1), 4-11. https://doi.org/10.1080/03071847.2013.774634
King, A. C. (2015). Women warriors: Female accession to ground combat. Armed Forces & Society, 41(4), 379-387. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48609193
McGraw, K., Koehlmoos, T. P., & Ritchie, E. C. (2016). Women in combat: Framing the issues of health and health research for America’s servicewomen. Military Medicine, 181(1 Suppl.), 7-11. https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED-D-15-00223
Ritchie, E. C., Grammer, G., McGhee, L. L., & Weeks, W. B. (2016). Women in combat: Summary of findings and a way ahead. Military Medicine, 181(1 Suppl.), 109-118. https://doi.org/10.7205/MILMED-D-15-00409
Dyches, K. D., Friedl, K. D, Greeves, J. P., Keller, M. F., McClung, H. L., McGurk, M. S., Popp, K. L., & Teyhen, D. S. (2023). Physiology of health and performance: Enabling success of women in combat arms roles. Military Medicine, 188(Suppl. 4), 19-31. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usac256
Brady, E., & Keller, M. F. (2023). Women in combat need a collaborative culture shift. Military Medicine, 188(Suppl. 4), 3-8. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usac405
Medical and Physiological Research
Freidl, K. E., & Gifford, R. M. (2020). Integrating women into ground close combat roles: An opportunity to reflect on universal paradigms of arduous training. BMJ Military Health, 169(2), 160-162. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjmilitary-2020-001568
Yanovich, R., Ketko, I., & Charkoudian, N. (2020). Sex differences in human thermoregulation: https://doi.org/10.1152/physiol.00035.2019
Journalistic and News Sources
Major News Coverage (2013)
Bumiller, E. (2013, January 23). Pentagon removes ban on women in combat. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pentagon-to-remove-ban-on-women-in-combat/2013/01/23/6cba86f6-659e-11e2-85f5-a8a9228e55e7_story.html
Cooper, H., & Bumiller, E. (2013, January 24). Pentagon to allow women in combat. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/women-combat-defense-secretary-leon-panetta-lifts-pentagon/story?id=18295570
Parnes, A. (2013, January 24). Obama ‘fully supports’ decision to let women serve in combat roles. The Hill.com. https://thehill.com/policy/defense/140209-obama-fully-supports-decision-to-let-women-serve-in-combat-roles/
Peralta, E. (2013, January 23). Panetta is lifting ban on women in combat roles. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2013/01/23/170093351/panetta-is-lifting-ban-on-women-in-combat-roles
Wong, K. (2013, January 23). Pentagon move will send women into direct combat. The Washington Times. https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jan/23/us-allow-women-combat/
Sisk, R., & Jordan, B. (2013, January 24). Panetta opens combat roles to women. Military.com. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/01/23/panetta-opens-combat-roles-to-women.html
Valor knows no gender’: Pentagon lifts ban on women in combat. (2013, January 24). NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/valor-knows-no-gender-pentagon-lifts-ban-women-combat-flna1C8103334
Vergun, D. (2013, February 7). Secretary of Defense rescinds ‘Direct Ground Combat Definition and Assignment Rule.’ Army News Service. https://www.army.mil/article/94932/secretary_of_defense_rescinds_direct_ground_combat_definition_and_assignment_rule
Major News Coverage (2015)
Bowman, T. (2015, December 3). Pentagon opens all combat positions to women. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2015/12/03/458361180/pentagon-opens-all-combat-positions-to-women
Lamothe, D. (2015, December 3). In historic decision, Pentagon chief opens all jobs in combat units to women. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2015/12/03/pentagon-chief-to-announce-how-womens-roles-in-the-military-will-expand/
Tobia, P. J. (2015, December 3). Defense secretary Carter opens all combat jobs to women. PBS NewsHour. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/watch-live-defense-secretary-carter-to-lift-ban-on-women-in-combat-jobs
McMichael, W. H. (2015, December 3). Ashton Carter promises same standards for women in combat roles. The Washington Times. https://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/dec/3/ash-carter-promises-same-standards-for-women-in-co/
Thompson, M. (2015, December 3). Women in combat: Why Pentagon chief overruled the Marines. TIME. https://time.com/4135583/women-combat-marines-ash-carter/
Analysis and Feature Articles
Copp, T. (2022, October 25). Ash Carter, defense chief who opened combat to women, dies. U.S. News & World Report. https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2022-10-25/harvard-school-ash-carter-obama-defense-chief-dies-at-68
Eckstein, M. (2015, September 21). Timeline: Women in combat roles. USNI News. https://news.usni.org/2015/09/21/timeline-women-in-combat-roles
Moore.E. (2020, March 31). Women in combat: Five-year status update. Center for a New American Security. https://www.cnas.org/publications/commentary/women-in-combat-five-year-status-update
Pruitt, S. (2013, January 24). U.S. military lifts ban on women in combat. HISTORY. https://www.history.com/articles/u-s-military-lifts-ban-on-women-in-combat
Servick, K. (2015). Feature: As U.S. moves to allow women in combat, researchers help set the bar. Science. https://www.science.org/content/article/feature-us-moves-allow-women-combat-researchers-help-set-bar
Swick, A., & Moore, E. (2018, April 19). The (mostly) good news on women in combat. Center for a New American Security. https://www.cnas.org/publications/reports/an-update-on-the-status-of-women-in-combat
Government Archives and Digital Collections
Presidential Statements
Obama, B. (2013, January 24). Statement by the President on the decision to lift the ban on women serving in combat [Press release]. The White House.
Obama, B. (2015, December 3). Statement by the President on women in the U.S. military. [Press release]. The White House. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2015/12/03/statement-president-women-us-military
Department of Defense Archives
U.S. Department of Defense. (2013, January 24). Historic memo [Photograph]. https://www.defense.gov/Multimedia/Photos/igphoto/2001971581/
Legal Cases
Hegar v. Panetta, No. 3:12-cv-06003 (N.D. Cal. filed Nov. 27, 2012).
Advocacy Organizations
American Civil Liberties Union. (2024, October 17). Combat exclusion policy for women. https://www.aclu.org/issues/womens-rights/womens-rights-workplace/combat-exclusion-policy-women
Service Women’s Action Network. (2023). Women’s equality in military service. https://www.servicewomen.org
Research Centers and Think Tanks
Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security. (2025, July 14). Women in combat: Issues for Congress. https://giwps.georgetown.edu/resource/women-in-combat-issues-for-congress/
Raphel, A. (2014. January 23). Women in the U.S. military and combat roles: Research roundup. The Journalist’s Resouces. https://journalistsresource.org/criminal-justice/women-military-research-roundup/
Reference Sources
Combat exclusion policy. (2025). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_Exclusion_Policy
Women in combat. (2025). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_combat
Women in combat. (2024). In EBSCO Research Starters. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/women-s-studies-and-feminism/women-combat