Public Employee Press

Third in a series on 'War in Iraq'

Race, gender and class in the military


African Americans are 13 percent of the civilian labor force in the 18-44-year-old range, but they make up 22 percent of enlisted soldiers. The Army has the highest percentage with 29 percent and the Marines the lowest with 17 percent. Hispanics make up 9 percent of enlisted soldiers but are 13 percent of the young civilian population of the United States.

Only 14 percent of enlisted soldiers are female, compared with 47 percent of the civilian labor force. About 92 percent of career fields in the military are open to women.

The U.S. Dept. of Defense says that most of its soldiers come from slightly lower socioeconomic backgrounds than the average American.

Not surprisingly, those in the top quarter of the nation’s income and education brackets — such as doctors, lawyers, stockbrokers and politicians — are not sending their sons and daughters for active duty in the Army. A mere 8 percent of new recruits come from families with a father or mother in the “professions.”

Source: “Home Fires Burning: Married to the Military — For Better or Worse,” by Karen Houppert.