This portrait sends a powerful message of the duality of being a woman and serving in the military. For me, it mean suppressing my feminine side until years after I left the military. To be taken seriously in the military, I had to hide the undesirable aspects of my nature (i.e. being emotional or too sensitive, nurturing or "coddling"). Others noticed the double standard when it came to speaking your mind in an assertive way. In men, it was a sign of confidence and leadership, in women it was seen as a flaw that needed to be corrected.
Not all men who serve behave in this manner, but there are many leaders that continue to perpetuate
an unhealthy culture for women in the military. The question that I wish to answer with this research is how this culture will be affected by the new decision to open combat positions up to women. I will continue to explore this topic through news articles and broadcasts of women in the American military, along with video interviews as I meet other women in the military.
"Jordan Robinson"
November 2015
Stacy Pearsall
I feel like Stacy Pearsall captures the personality of these men and women in her portraits. Many of them recapture the good times that I had in the military when I look at them, and it reminds me that despite the flaws that I would like to see addressed, I had a great experience in the military. It completely changed who I am and how I looked at the world. I went places that I would never have seen otherwise, and those visits gave me some serious perspective on my own life here at home. This is an experience that I believe everyone should have the opportunity for, man and woman, homosexual and heterosexual, and so on.
"Robin Robinson"
November 2014
Stacy Pearsall
"Madeline Bobbit"
June 2014
Stacy Pearsall
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