Posted on 11/26/2017 7:30:30 AM PST by Olog-hai
The young Army infantry recruits lined up in full combat gear, guns at the ready. At the signal, a soldier in front kicked in the door and they burst into the room, swiveling to check around the walls for threats. Youre dead! one would-be enemy yelled out from a dark corner, the voice slightly higher than the others echoing through the building. It was 18-year-old Kirsten, training to become one of the Armys first women serving as infantry soldiers.
I want to be one of the females to prove to everybody else that just because youre a female, doesnt mean you cant do the same things as a male, she said, describing her brother an infantry soldier as motivation. I also wanted to one-up him.
Kirsten is among more than 80 women who have gone to recruit training at Fort Benning, Georgia, since a ban on them serving in combat jobs was lifted. Twenty-two have graduated. More than 30 were still in training late last month, working toward graduation. [ ]
The Armys introduction of women into the infantry has moved steadily but cautiously this year. As home to the previously all-male infantry and armor schools, Fort Benning had to make $35 million in renovations, including female dorm rooms, security cameras, and monitoring stations.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
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