Defense budget bill would end Marine Corps’ gender-segregated recruit training

WASHINGTON — Male and female Marine Corps recruits will train together at boot camp under a provision in the new defense budget, ending the service’s practice of gender segregation.

On Monday evening, the House and Senate Armed Services committees finished the compromise conference report for the fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, which includes a requirement to end gender-segregated training at the two Marine Corps recruit depots.

The Marine Corps is the last service branch not to completely train men and women together at basic training. Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island in South Carolina is the only location where female recruits are trained. In January, the Marine Corps integrated a female platoon with five male platoons in the 3rd Recruit Training Battalion at Parris Island for the first time due to the small number of female recruits.

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