Women can be all they can be, too
FORT BENNING, Ga. — 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.
“You’re 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 Army’s first women serving as infantry soldiers.
“I want to be one of the females to prove to everybody else that just because you’re a female, doesn’t mean you can’t 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, Ga., since a ban on them serving in combat jobs was lifted. Twentytwo have graduated. More than 30 were still in training late last month, working toward graduation. The recruits’ last names are being withheld by The Associated Press because some women have faced bullying on social media.
Somewhat smaller in stature than some of her male comrades, Kirsten gave up a Division I soccer scholarship to become an infantry soldier. In body armor, helmet and rucksack, she looks like just any other grunt.
The Army’s 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.
This is the third class of recruits at Benning to include women. In the last class, only four women graduated, so filling rotations for guard duty all night was a problem. There weren’t enough women to cover every hour, so others had to fill in.
As women drop out, those remaining are moved to new companies to maintain balance within units, said Lt. Col. Sam Edwards, commander of 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry regiment. More than 36 percent of Benning’s women have left — about twice the rate of men. Injuries have sidelined other women who plan to restart the training.
Army leaders are closely watching the integration to track injury and performance trends and ensure there are no problems.
“It was a boys club for a long time,” Col. Kelly Kendrick said. “You have to be professional.”