by Richard Manning
According to a story in the Washington Free Beacon, as millions of Afghan women are abandoned to subjugation and torture at the hands of the Taliban, President Joe Biden’s Defense Department (DoD) will celebrate “Women’s Equality Day” on Thursday by hosting a 5K run at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois.
“Women’s Equality Day gives us an opportunity to reflect on the many benefits of true equality and the role of women in our public life,” the military’s diversity and inclusion officers wrote in an email announcing the event. No registration is required to participate, and prizes will be awarded to the top three finishers.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Taliban soldiers are murdering Afghan women for not wearing burqas. On Tuesday, in a scene right out of the Handmaid’s Tale, the militant group’s official spokesman urged women to stay home until “women related procedures are in place.” Taliban soldiers, he warned, are “not trained” to respect them or refrain from violent acts of misogyny.
Only the Biden DoD could announce their commitment to women’s equality and diversity while having a stand down order for U.S. troops in Afghanistan who could be rescuing women allied with America against the terrors of the Taliban. Americans pay over $700 billion each year for a military that protects freedom, both domestic and abroad.
The unwillingness of the Biden administration to use that military to rescue Americans trapped in Afghanistan, effectively sentencing them to death, is an astonishing betrayal of the sacred trust they have been given to represent our nation around the world.
A military veteran with knowledge of the email announcement told the Washington Free Beacon they were appalled, given the unfolding disaster in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s medieval approach to women’s equality. “It shows a complete lack of situational awareness, and shows how inept this administration is in handling a crisis—that they push woke bullshit during this time,” the veteran said. “Soldiers will hate it.”
Earlier this week, as U.S. diversity and inclusion officers were organizing the 5K run for women’s equality, a young Afghan woman was describing her state of mind as the Taliban solidified its control of the country: “I want to kill myself, and I am not alone, many women in Afghanistan are broken now.”
“I want to kill myself, and I am not alone, many women in Afghanistan are broken now”
My interview with one of the woman in Afghanistan who can not help crying after walking short distance in the streets of Kabul.
She explains about her experience living under Taliban. pic.twitter.com/KIGB5ly7wV— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) August 23, 2021
The sad fact is, American-allied Afghan women are running for their lives while the Pentagon is hosting a fun run for privileged American women. This should not be misconstrued as a criticism of our troops on the ground in Afghanistan who are doing all they are allowed to do to save lives. If their bosses in D.C. had that same courage and commitment to freedom, we would not be fleeing in Afghanistan in an imposed retreat.
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Richard Manning is President of Americans for Limited Government.
Photo “Burqa” by Institute for Money, Technology and Financial Inclusion. CC BY-SA 2.0.
