"Bring Me Men..." Brought Women

Book excerpt: On June 28, 1976, into the all-male bastion of the United States Air Force Academy 157 women stepped, challenging the slogan over the entrance ramp that read "Bring Me Men." These women inspired an upheaval of change in this tradition-bound military school. Their journey was one of survival in a male-dominated environment, where they struggled to find balance on a seesaw of ingrained gender discrimination and undesired special privileges. This book tells the story of the first female cadets in the United States Air Force Academy, and their fight to make a permanent place for themselves there. Chapters explore their struggle to be accepted, the difficulties of the training environment, the camaraderie and conflict with men and the hardships and joys of those who marched in the ranks of that first co-ed class.