2003 Observance of Women's History Month

1. THE MONTH OF MARCH IS SET ASIDE TO RECOGNIZE THE 
ACHIEVEMENTS OF WOMEN. THE THEME FOR THIS YEAR'S OBSERVANCE IS 
"WOMEN PIONEERING THE FUTURE."
2. WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH IS AN IDEAL TIME TO RECOGNIZE THE 
CONTRIBUTIONS OF FEMALE MARINES AS THEY CELEBRATE THEIR 60TH YEAR 
OF CONTINUOUS ACTIVE SERVICE IN THE MARINE CORPS. ONE PIONEER WAS 
PRIVATE OPHA MAE JOHNSON WHO BECAME THE FIRST WOMAN MARINE WHEN 
SHE ENLISTED, AS A MARINE RESERVIST (F), IN 1918 DURING 
WORLD WAR I. DURING THAT WAR, 305 WOMEN ENLISTED TO "FREE A MAN TO 
FIGHT." 
3. ANOTHER MILESTONE WAS REACHED IN 1948 WHEN CONGRESS PASSED 
THE WOMEN'S ARMED SERVICES INTEGRATION ACT. THIS LEGISLATION MADE 
WOMEN A PERMANENT PART OF THE REGULAR MARINE CORPS. IN 1950, FOR
THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, WOMEN RESERVISTS WERE MOBILIZED FOR THE
KOREAN WAR. AT THE HEIGHT OF THE VIETNAM WAR, THERE WERE
APPROXIMATELY 2,700 WOMEN MARINES ON ACTIVE DUTY SERVING BOTH
STATESIDE AND OVERSEAS. 
4. TODAY, WOMEN ARE TRAINED IN 93 PERCENT OF MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL 
SPECIALTIES AND SERVE IN 62 PERCENT OF ALL BILLETS. GREATER
LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AND CAREER TRAINING HAVE EMPOWERED 
WOMEN TO BE PROMOTED AND SELECTED FOR COMMAND. WOMEN HOLD EVERY 
RANK IN THE CORPS FROM PRIVATE TO MAJOR GENERAL AND ACCOUNT FOR 
6.2 PERCENT OF THE CORPS' STRENGTH. SIMILARLY, WOMEN CONTINUE TO 
TRANSITION FROM ACTIVE DUTY TO CIVILIAN LEADERSHIP POSITIONS 
IN BUSINESS, GOVERNMENT, EDUCATION, AND THEIR COMMUNITIES. 
5. DURING MARCH, COMMANDERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO RECOGNIZE AND 
CELEBRATE THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF WOMEN AS INDIVIDUALS, AND MORE 
IMPORTANTLY, ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR ROLES AS INTEGRAL MEMBERS OF THE 
MARINE TEAM. COMMANDERS ARE FURTHER ENCOURAGED TO CONDUCT PROGRAMS 
AND PROMOTE PARTICIPATION IN OBSERVANCE EVENTS BOTH ON BASE AND IN 
THE LOCAL COMMUNITY. COMMANDERS ARE AUTHORIZED TO DEVELOP LOCAL 
THEMES FOR USE AT THEIR COMMANDS.