Australia’s incoming Chief of Army, Lt. General Susan Coyle, will be the first woman ever to hold the Army’s top post. Her appointment in the lead-up to Anzac Day reflects a change that’s been decades in the making. The true history of warfare is the story of men and women together on the battlefield. But in the early 20th century that reality changed, and at the same time, female fighters began to be written out of the history books. This is the story of how western women successfully fought their way back onto the front line. It’s also a story about how the current US administration is once again trying to wrest them from the field.

Guests:

Ashleigh Percival-Borley – Military historian, Durham University

Dr Sarah Percy – Associate professor, School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland

Dr Megan McKenzie – Professor, School for International Studies, Simon Fraser University

Dr Kyleanne Hunter – CEO of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

Links:

Sarah Percy’s Forgotten Warriors

Kyleanne Hunter’s Invisible Veterans

Megan MacKenzie’s Beyond the Band of Brothers

The history and future of women in combat

Rear Vision — How History Shaped Today