As a cultural historian who focuses on gender and sexuality AND war and society/military institutions, Beth Bailey, is uniquely positioned to place into historical context the lifting of the ban on women in combat and to talk about what it means for the military and for society. She is currently acting director of Temple's Center for the Study of Force and Diplomacy.

In her book "America’s Army: Making the All-Volunteer Force" (2009), Bailey tells the story of America’s all-volunteer force (AVF) and in the process offers a history of America in the post-Vietnam era. According to Bailey, the Army — more so than other institutions — has had to directly confront the legacies of the social change movements of the 1960’s.

“I have always been interested in the question of who belongs, of who counts in American society and on what terms. Military service is one of ways that people claim the full rights of citizenship in this country,” said Bailey.

She is also the author of "Sex in the Heartland: Politics, Culture, and the Sexual Revolution" (Harvard University Press, 1999).

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