Throughout history, the United States has been notoriously prejudice. Be it against race, religion, or sex, they have all had prejudices held against them. But, the people of this country have grown and have learned that race doesn't matter, nor does religious preference. They've learned this after minorities have proven themselves time and time again in many different arenas. However, no matter how far advanced this country becomes in the field of equality, it just can't seem to get over it's prejudices against women; women in the military in particular.
Prejudice has been present in the US military since it's founding. The problem then was allowing black men into their ranks. During the civil War, an all black platoon proved its valor and triumphed over many white units. But still, the US military would not accept black men. Once the military finally did start admitting them, they were only allowed in limited positions such as cools and laundrymen. Of course now they are allowed in any position a white man is, but what about women?.
Women also served in the Civil War, but they were disguised as men. They served in a variety of combat positions such as spies, curriers, and scouts to name a few. And they were considered competent soldiers, as long as the min didn't discover them. Then once they were discovered, they were only considered, and all of their acts of valor and courage were forgotten, erased by their sex.
It wasn't until WWII that women were officially admitted into the military, but just as black men, it was only in limited positions. They were telephone operators, secretaries, and nurses, and held various other administrative positions. In reality, the only reason that women were allowed to hold the positions that they did, was so that they could free a man to fight. The US needed as many men on the frontlines as possible, and didn't see a reason that a healthy man should be filing papers when he could be holding a rifle when a woman could do his same job.