As a Marine stationed in Iraq, Corporal Katherine Montalbano didn’t shy away from the action. She fired machine guns, dismantled enemy weapons, and searched people at checkpoints.
Yet unlike the male Marines she served alongside back in 2008, Montalbano wasn’t considered a member of the infantry. Instead, she was a temporary member of a male combat unit. Her group—called the Lionesses—was an early test of how women would handle serving on the front lines.
Montalbano and other female troops earned praise, but it took nearly another decade for the U.S. military to officially let women serve in combat. In January 2016, the Department of Defense opened all combat positions in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard to female troops.
As a Marine stationed in Iraq, Corporal Katherine Montalbano didn’t shy away from the action. She fired machine guns, took enemy weapons apart, and searched people at checkpoints.
Yet unlike the male Marines she served alongside back in 2008, Montalbano wasn’t considered a member of the infantry. Instead, she was a temporary member of a male combat unit. Her group—called the Lionesses—was an early test of how women would handle serving on the front lines.
Montalbano and other female troops earned praise. But it took nearly another decade for the U.S. military to officially let women serve in combat. In January 2016, the Department of Defense opened all combat positions in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard to female troops.