Author Archives: Sidra Montgomery
When we survey military spouses, who are we really studying?
You might have heard a lot about military spouses in the last week because President Trump signed an executive order about military spouse employment and “Military Spouse Appreciation Day” was last Friday. When we hear information or reports about military spouses we tend to think we are talking about the community as a whole—anyone who […]
The Myths and Truths about Homelessness among Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans
Stephen Metraux (@SteveMetraux) is a researcher at the National Center for Homelessness Among Veterans of the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and has done extensive research on homelessness. More information on him and his research is at http://www.stephenmetraux.com. Opinions are his and do not reflect official VA positions. Americans feel a keen obligation […]
(Belated) One Year Celebration: Our Top 5 Posts
With a busy end to the Fall semester followed by the holidays, we’ve been too tied up to recognize and celebrate our one year blog anniversary! But…we figure better late than never! While the idea for this blog began several years ago, we finally launched on Veteran’s Day in November 2016. We couldn’t be more […]
Why #metoo won’t be a watershed moment for the military
Over the last several months our country has been experiencing a cultural reckoning around the issues of sexual harassment and sexual assault, especially in relation to women in the workplace. After allegations about Harvey Weinstein, a Hollywood executive and producer, became public we continue to witness the fall of top journalists, actors, and political leaders […]
Transgender Servicemembers: What We Know
Nearly a week ago, President Trump made a surprising policy announcement via Twitter about transgender servicemembers and prospective military recruits. On Wednesday, July 26th he wrote: (1) “After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow……”, (2) “….Transgender individuals to serve in any […]
Is there a Military Spouse Hiring Penalty?
Brittany N. Dernberger (@bdernberger) is a Doctoral Student in Sociology at University of Maryland, College Park, where she studies social inequality and mobility. Her research focuses on gender and sexuality, the changing nature of work, and how social institutions influence life outcomes. Military spouses are what you would call “tied migrants.” Tied migrants are people who […]
A Tale of Two Wounded Veterans
Last week I was honored to represent the American Sociological Association (ASA) at a Coalition for National Science Funding (CSNF) exhibition on Capitol Hill. The annual event gives lawmakers a chance to see the impact of research funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). I received a Dissertation Improvement Grant from NSF, which helped me […]
Book Review: Portraits of Courage
I remember a couple years ago when I first heard that George W. Bush was painting wounded warriors – I wasn’t sure what to think. On the hand, I was very cynical, “painting the people he sent to war?” It seemed like an empty gesture coming far too late. But then I heard him interviewed […]
The Emotion Work of “Thank You For Your Service”
In the post-9/11 era, “thank you for your service” (TYFYS) has become the new mantra of public support bestowed upon the veteran community. In the early 2000s, as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq began escalating, “Support Our Troops” car magnets increasingly appeared on the trunks of cars across America. After well over 15 years […]
Do You Want Fries With That Back-Up Plan?
**Participants have been given pseudonyms to protect confidentiality** The most interesting little nuggets of qualitative data are the things you don’t ask about, but that come up over and over again. While Meredith and I were conducting interviews with servicemembers who were about to leave the military—we kept hearing the same curious statement unprompted by […]
Sidra Montgomery
Meredith Kleykamp
Veteran Scholars 