Real-life sniper

[Flyvåpnet]

Roza Yegorovna Shanina (Роза Егоровна Шанина) [1924 – 28 January 1945] was a sniper during the Second World War  (Great Patriotic War).  She was responsible for 54 confirmed kills, including 12 enemy soldiers during the Battle of Vilnius.

Shanina had light brown hair and blue eyes. After attending Arkhangelsk Teacher's Training College, she became a mentor in the kindergarten.  Then, she voluntarily joined the Vsevobuch and later the Central Female Sniper Academy in Podolsk. On 22 June 1943 Shanina enlisted in the Red Army and on 2 April 1944 joined the 184th Rifle Division, where a separate female sniper platoon was formed.  Once, upon receiving a battalion commander's order to immediately return to the rear, Shanina replied 'I will return after the battle'.  The words later became a title of the book From The Battle Returned by Nikolai Zhuravlyov.  Shanina died in a battle near the farmstead of Rikhau.  Her battle diary and several letters have been published.  Streets in Arkhangelsk and in the settlements of Shangaly and Stroyevskoye were named after her.

Shanina had four brothers, but only one survived the war.

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[Captn' Red]

War is messed up.. Couldnt be easy being a woman in the army back then.

[Silent K]

The weird thing is she looks a lot like my aunt when she was young...
Missing branch in the family tree?

[Flyvåpnet]

I agree with you, Red:  first, that war is definitely messed up; and secondly, that although women have fought in military combat since ancient times it's undoubtedly been more difficult for them due to the institutional misogyny and sexism which has always permeated armed forces.  It's the same way today, sadly, especially in U.S. armed forces.

One thing about the Russians, though:  when it comes to war, they've never cared who's doing the job, just that the job's getting done.  We in the so-called "free world" could learn something from that, I should think.  U.S. armed forces send women into combat zones, but don't allow them in combat-arms units (artillery, armor, infantry, etc.).

A scenario I think of in regard to this has to do with arguably history's finest sharpshooter:  Annie Oakley, who toured with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show a hundred years ago.  I imagine her being a young woman today and enlisting in, say, the U.S. Army.  "Private Oakley, we know you can shoot a fly on a mesa a mile away; but we won't let you carry a rifle into combat because you're female."



Silent K, I started this thread in this particular forum because Roza Shanina reminds me of Yoko Ritona:  they both have round, soft faces and both were snipers.  Both of them pursued careers in education, although Roza unfortunately left that profession to directly take part in the war effort.  Yoko did the war part first, then went into education.  I imagine Roza encountered misogyny and sexism whilst in the army, even as Yoko did whilst a commando.  I wonder if people at Gainax knew something about Roza Shanina.

 

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[Tragic]

Women in the army back in the day was probably one hell of a time. If it was nowadays I'm sure there'd be plenty of harassment lawsuits, etc...

[Flyvåpnet]

Tragic, one big problem for women in the U.S. military who are sexually harassed is the fact they are - like all U.S. military personnel on active duty - not governed by the Constitution of the United States but rather by the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).  The UCMJ denies military personnel many rights enjoyed by U.S. civilians.  It's somewhat akin to having private-sector workplace rules applying to one's life 24 hours a day.

A study conducted several years ago by the U.S. Department of Defense revealed 52 percent of women in the military - and 9 percent of the men - had experienced what constituted sexual harassment.  That study was commissioned right after the so-called "Tailhook" incident, in which a group of military aircraft pilots sexually assaulted several lower-ranking female officers.

In my view, there are two factors which contribute to the misogyny and sexism which is rampant in the U.S. military.  One factor is the "boys' club" mentality which pervades the male commissioned-officer and senior non-commissioned-officer ranks.  (Think of Kamina's behavior toward Yoko in respect to military conduct.)  The other factor, which I think is less pervasive but which is very real, is the recent trend in U.S. military academies (Air Force Academy, Annapolis, West Point) toward embracing evangelical fundamentalist Christianity - the hardcore "wives are subservient to their husbands" brand of religion - to the exclusion of other, more moderate, religions in addition to atheism.

Religious fixation thus governs the behavior of many officers, to the detriment of military efficiency.  It's rather like the nonsensical bushidō fixation which was so widespread amongst Japanese officers during the Second World War.  All that "fight to the death" malarkey decimated the Japanese military and contributed heavily to much post-war trauma:  children without fathers, wives without husbands, etc.  The situation in the U.S. military regarding misogyny and sexism is not as dire a phenomenon as was bushidō in the Japanese military, obviously, but it nevertheless seriously hampers military efficiency.

Women in the U.S. military who suffer discrimination and harassment because of their gender must go through "proper channels" in making complaints; and when commissioned officers as well as senior non-commissioned officers are inclined to dislike female military personnel per se, you can readily see that justice will remain out of reach in most cases - even as retribution against those seeking it will not.



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[Alice]

Wow, she's so pretty! I'll have to check out The Battle Returned.

One thing about the Russians, though:  when it comes to war, they've never cared who's doing the job, just that the job's getting done.  We in the so-called "free world" could learn something from that, I should think.  U.S. armed forces send women into combat zones, but don't allow them in combat-arms units (artillery, armor, infantry, etc.).

One of the reasons I love Russia so much. <3 He's a good guy, deep down.

On one hand, it seems messed up that they wouldn't let women into the same combat areas as men, but then again they do have reasons sometimes. Should they lower the strength tests and things just so women can be let in? For equality of the sexes? I know that if I were bleeding wounded on the ground I would want to be saved by a soldier who was strong enough to carry me to the first aid place or whatever, not just dragged by someone who had to have the bar lowered.

Not to say that there isn't discrimination. Just if a person isn't physically able to do the job right, then yes, they shouldn't be allowed to be in the division. It doesn't matter if they are male or female. If they don't let a woman do the same job as a man when she clearly can, then obviously that's a problem. I guess what I'm trying to say is that women shouldn't have an automatic "in" just for the sake of equality. And personally, I don't think sexism is as big a problem as it used to be. People nowadays think that women and men should be equal in all aspects, but the fact is, women and men are actually different. (gasp!) Study sociology for a bit, interesting stuff.

Sorry, I went on a bit of a rant... heh. (My strong anti-feminism got the best of me, I think). In any case, Miss Roza is a hero and a true soldier. :)

[Flyvåpnet]

Alice, your points are well taken!  Indeed, there ought to be strength tests in case just such emergencies as you point out arise - and they will arise.  I frankly don't know how armed forces which have traditionally accepted women in all roles (e.g.:  Israel, Russia) deal with that aspect of training.



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[0235]

wow. her family was luck to have even one member survive. i know someone where nearly all of her family was killed, only her grandmother survived.

i think that in the case of the british RAF, the only force that you cant join is the RAF Regement, and the problem there isnt the women themselves, its how there presence would affect the men, the example given is that if a female soldier was about to be shot, one of the males is more likely to take the bullet (and risk both of them being killed) than if it was a male about to be shot.

a friend recently went on a RAF training course of 50 people, the to 3 were all females, the 4th a male and 5th and 6th females!

[Flyvåpnet]

That's very interesting, 0235!  Well, old habits die hard; and such is the case with traditionally men-only occupations.

The highest decoration for military valor in the U.S. armed forces is the Congressional Medal of Honor; and most of the recipients died on the battlefield.  Most of those recipients fell on hand grenades to save the lives of their comrades-in-arms.  Consequently, I think the notion of men unnecessarily risking their lives because a comrade happens to be female is unfounded.

Women in the military must, as Alice pointed out, be able to demonstrate sufficient strength to cope with any combat situation.  However, physical-fitness requirements must reflect reality and not be used as tools to wrongfully discriminate against anyone.  We've all seen photographs and videos of women around the world bearing heavy burdens as a matter of course.  Generally speaking, women have leg strength superior to men; and women are better able to cope with cold weather.

Females don't have an "extra" fat layer, but their subcutaneous fat layer is thicker than men's.  Also, females exhibit greater near-surface vasoconstriction (constriction of blood vessels) and hence experience less body-heat loss.  One wonders if that fact figures into the physical requirements of armed forces!



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[0235]

also, it is prven that women feel 30% less pain than men, which is why my friend keeps burning himself on hair straighteners but his girlfrind doesnt!