This is beyond just not right. This is an affront to what we stand for. The Military exists to protect the interests of the United States, to protect it’s people, and to guard the Constitutional Freedoms of it’s citizens.
Former Representative for California a Democrat named Jane Harman has been a long time advocate of women in the Military. As a former insider on security doctrine even she was left in the dark concerning the gravity of Sexual Assault within the Military.
“4 in 10 women in military hospitals have been raped by fellow Soldiers” – Rep. Harman.
I would argue that 1 in 100,000 is too many, 1 in 1,000,000 is too many, 1 in 1,000,000,000 is too many…that saying can go on and on. So what is the problem exactly?
In the past month we have had 1 Safety Day dedicated specifically to the education of Sexual Abuse. We have had a second Safety day were it was the focus for about 45 minutes. Yet we know it is going to continue. There is a culture and a sickness that needs to be addressed and training days will only do so much.
We need to stand up and say that isn’t right. Leaders need to be accountable and hold their Soldiers accountable as well.
For years our Society ignored the victim, we put the burden of proof on the victim and we made it almost impossible to properly prosecute a rapist or other sexual offender. A stigma was created that never should have been done and it is a shame. Victims don’t want to come forward, and so the rapist gets to continue bullying and taking what he wants without recourse.
Things have changed now. Victims are no longer immediately dismissed, and the burden of proof is now put on the accused. They still must endure very invasive and somewhat embarrassing if not degrading (at least it must feel that way to many) tests and examinations in order to gather evidence.
Some will argue and rightfully so that this shift has put some undue burden on men in the military having to prove their innocence. While this is sometimes the case, it isn’t always and in fact is often not. Perhaps repercussions for lying need to be raised so that victims won’t have the incentive to label falsely an aggressor.
Regardless, we have a problem. It can be as simple as drunk Soldier raping a woman after a night at the bar. It can be as complicated as a Senior Soldier be it a Platoon Sergeant or a Battalion Commander taking advantage of a Soldier’s spouse during deployment. Leaders need to hold Soldiers accountable. Leaders need to hold themselves and their peers accountable.
