Cover Story
CADET from page 7
Most of the resentment comes from the male cadets,
rather than the officers, Lee said.
Denise Coudreau, a senior in company E-3, is one cadet
who said too much had been made of the harassment of
women cadets.
Coudreau said she felt the cadets were treated equally
when they wre plebes. She said she had seen some harass
ment of females, but that she had been able to ignore it "I
just took it as a joke."
There are going to be feelings of resentment anytime a
woman breaks into a traditionally all-male area, Coudreau
said. Once the woman proves herself, she can usually gain
acceptance, she added.
It is hard to say . what the Army
wants out of the female cadets.
Although academy literature implies
that it wants women who are strong
and independent, yet feminine and
attractive, the women are resented if
they act feminine in the academy,
Coudreau said she disliked it when the administration
tried to separate the women, even with good intentions. A
meeting called specifically for female cadets caused more
problems than it solved, shesaid. '- ' ' "V. -;
"I think it's wrong. We're part of the corps. I just don't like
it when people emphasize that I am a female. I am a cadet,"
Coudreau said.
The male cadets that were interviewed disagreed on
whether the women were harassed more, but they said they
felt some resentment about the women being there.
The description of preferential treatment and unfair dou
ble standards vary from one cadet to the next While a
female cadet explains that there are certain allowances in
the physical requirements to account for the physiological
differences between men and women, a male cadet savs the
differences are so large that in some instances, an "A" time
for a woman is failing time for man. -
To some cadets, the differences in requirements are a
necessary adjustment. To others, the differences are a drop
in the high standards of the academy just to keep as many
women as possible at West Point
Second Lt Bob Kruger, who was the executive officer in
company k last year, saia ine women at west roini raiiea
to keep with the high standards of the corps.
"I know of one girl who was allowed to take the strength
and endurance test seven or eight times before she passed to
get in," Kruger said. "The emphasis is placed on getting the
women in here."
Kruger said he first felt women should not be at West
.Point when he began his basic training and watched the
women "dropping like flies" on the run?, Kruger said some
men also did not finish the runs but the women dropped out
the most often.
"You're carrying her-rif le while another guy is carrying her
pack and you're giving her all your water because she drank
all of hers," Kruger said. "How are you supposed to feel?"
. Because he is an officer, Kruger said his official view was
one of support for the women, his personal view is one of
bitterness.
"I've seen it go down here since I was a plebe," Kruger
said. "I've seen the discipline go down, I've seen the respect
go down and I've seen the pride go down."
Kruger said when he f irst attended West Point, he had an
open mind about the women. He added he felt no personal
animosity toward them now. "I like most of the girls. They're
good eggs, they try hard."
Kruger said he thought the physiological differences be
tween men and women were just too much to try to in
tegrate them into a military academy.
"There are too many differences for them to coexist in a
high stress environment," Kruger said.
Cadet John O'Brien, a senior in company 1-3, said the
system of grading could be blamed for much of the resent
ment against the women.
He cited the requirement time on the two-mile run as an
example of the huge adjustments in the men's and women's
' . standards. ; . - -' v
"The time allotment is adjusted so much, O'Brien said.
"He performs better, she gets the better grade. The system is
set up that way and it breeds resentment You really: can't
take it out on the female, they didn't have anything to do
-with it" : ...... v ;
The physiological differences make the double standard
' necessary but the large discrepancies cause harsh feelings,
O'Brien said.
Kruger said he felt the double standards would always
cause resentment among the male cadets.
"In 30 or 40 years, you will still hear the same gripes and
complaints. Men hate a dual standard"
Kruger cited an instance with grades that he felt was un
fair. "Academically, I know of a minority female plebe who
was an athlete who failed four academic subjects and was
allowed to remain," Kruger said. "I've never known a man
who failed more than two who remained. I find that pretty
inexcusable." : v -
7 think it's wrong We're part of the
corps. I just don't like it when people
emphasize that I am a female. I am a
cadet.'
Denise Goudreau
a senior at West Point
"There is a quota, an unofficial quota," he said. .
Kruger said he resented the idea of toying with an
organization as vital to the country as defense.
"I'm sick and tired of seeing West Point being used as a
social experiment We ought to get back to the nitty-gritty of
producing officers, not trying to solve the country's woes in
this microcosm," Kruger said.
"There's a certain element of bitterness," he added.
"You've got to live at West Point to feel it"
Kruger estimated that 90 percent of the cadets did not
want the women there.
Other cadets disagreed with Kruger's opinion.
Mike Hogan, a senior in company 1-3 and president of the
.class, said he thought the resentment against the women
was lessening each year. A lot of harassment came from the
last all-male classes and the companies that didn't have ,
women in them kept up the harassment, Hogan said.
"You talk to a plebe and he is a whole lot less resentful
than a first time (a senior cadet) would be," Hogan said.
Cadet Brad Johnson, a senior in company G-3, agreed that
the attitudes against the women were changing slowly.
"The general attitude is more realistic, if s not just a male
dominated Army," Johnson said.
Elaine McClatchey is a staff writer for The Daily Tar Heel.
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