The Marine Corps' top officer said he would not
force straight Marines to
share rooms with gay service members if Congress
repeals the "don't ask, don't
tell" law
and allows gay men and lesbians to serve openly in the armed forces.
Gen.
James T.
Conway
, the commandant of the Marine Corps,
told the Web site military.com
in
an interview published Friday
that an
"overwhelming
" number of Marines would be opposed to bunking with
someone of a different sexual orientation. As a result, he said, the Corps might
have to ditch its double-bed rooms and offer single rooms to everyone.
"We want to continue [two-person rooms], but I would not ask our Marines to
live with someone who is homosexual if we can possibly avoid it," Conway told
the Web site. The Marine Corps is the only branch of the armed services that
requires its unmarried members to share rooms, a policy meant to foster unit
cohesion.