Tne military is full of enlisted from small towns, poor families in south and Midwest. They had imited opportunities. One of our relatives joined marines for this reason.
I feel for the poor and those who lack opportunity more so than most on this site, i'd wager, but I do not regard the military as a social program. It should not be used as a social program.
We should have the most effective war fighters we are able to find, and we should not be focusing on "equality" in order to accomplish this task.
I don't have an answer as to what to do about the problem of poor people seeking a living in areas that lack opportunity, but I believe our military should be kept as strong as possible, even if that requires denying some people opportunities to advance themselves.