"We're on a high right now," Staroscik said. For now, another cycle of women isn't scheduled for San Diego. The Corps is under a Congressional mandate to open west coast Boot Camp to women, but the deadline is 2028. The Marines are the last service to fully integrate women into boot camp. Graduates of west coast boot camp are dubbed Hollywood Marines - and these women are the first female Hollywood Marines in the 100 history of San Diego boot camp. It shows to myself that I'm bigger than I am."Īmerican Homefront The Marine Corps is under a Congressional mandate to fully integrate boot camp. This shows to everyone that I actually can. "Looking down at this, I didn't think I was strong enough to be here. "It meant so much more than I thought it would going to mean," she said. Parra, muddy and sleep deprived, held it in her palm. Each new Marine received an eagle globe and anchor pin - the symbol of the Corps. ![]() You see it, and you just kind of tremble."īut they reached the top, where they held the traditional ceremony. "And us girls, I've even overheard male recruits. "You see the Reaper even at the chow hall," Parra said. Unlike the Marines' traditional training site for women in flat and swampy Parris Island, S.C., west coast boot camp culminates with scaling "the Reaper," a summit that looms over Camp Pendleton. "There were a lot of tears when they announced that platoon 3241 won drill." All of us remembered why we wanted to be a Marine," Parra said. "You could tell the moment we hit that parade deck, there was just passion. ![]() Her parents didn't want their honor student daughter to join the Marines. She dropped out of college in her junior year, when she ran out of money. We're supposed to be the ones building ourselves back up."Īt 21, Parra is older than the average recruit. 'Why do we put ourselves down?" said recruit Marie Ann Parra. Then came Final Drill, and the women won - beating the five other platoons. Fahl said the women were meticulous, with better attention to detail, but they weren't as confident as the men. The women came in behind the five male platoons. "When it came to initial drill, they were very, very nervous, and they messed up a lot, and we actually tied for last."ĭrill is synchronized marching. ![]() The low point came midway through the 13 weeks, said drill instructor Stephanie Fahl. I think it became more of a challenge to them, to push them to be harder."Ĭameras often followed the women as they ran, swam, climbed obstacles, and crawled through the California dirt. "They're not oblivious to what happens on social media," said senior drill instructor Amber Staroscik. Some observers were cheering them on, while others were more negative - like Fox News host Tucker Carlson, who called efforts to accommodate female troops "a mockery of the U.S. The first group of female Marine recruits to train on the west coast understood people were watching.
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