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CI- Sexual Assault in the Military

January 23, 2013 by Sam Lebold   

For my CI blog, I decided to go with the topic of women in the military, because the more I looked into it, the more I realized there was to write about on the topic.

For my inaugural CI blog, I’m going to be addressing the issue of sexual assault in the military, because I think that it is a really important issue that needs attention and isn’t always handled in the best way. This brings up a lot of topics based on women in the military that I might touch on this week and elaborate on in the future.

I found this really neat video on the NYTimes website from a couple years ago called Women At Arms: Assault in the Ranks. It is a short documentary that depicts one woman, Cpt. Margaret White’s encounter with stalking and sexual assault while she was deployed in Iraq. She did not report the incident, and later came forward and gave a statement when her assailant was charged with 19 other cases of assault.

http://www.nytimes.com/video/2009/12/27/us/1247466272631/women-at-arms.html?ref=womenatarms

(I would highly suggest checking this video out – it’s only about 6 minutes long, and it’s a great description of real problems that women face in the military)

A report from the Pentagon states cases like Cpt. Whites are not uncommon, and that somewhere around 10% of all cases of sexual assault and rape are reported in the military. In 2008, approximately 3,000 sexual assault cases were reported, which means that the actual number of assaults is probably around 30,000 per year. To me, this statistic is startling and needs attention.

One of the issues that leads to sexual assault being common in the military is that the military is still a male-centered institution. The ratio of male to female soldiers is always skewed towards the males, and women often struggle as a minority. This is heightened by the nature of the job, especially in exceedingly physical or difficult situations such as deployment. Women in the military often feel like they have to overcompensate for their gender and appear just as “tough” or “strong” as their male counterparts. Personally, it would seem to be that “tough” and “strong” are labels that could be done away with, because women are made to feel like they have to work harder than men to attain the status of “tough” or “strong”.

Cpt. White also says that she felt as if she could not speak up because what she was facing was far less important or significant than the day to day tragedies of being stationed in Iraq. She stated in the video that there’s the mentality that because you’re in the army, you need to be strong, tough and “able to get past this” on your own. This is a common mindset in the overwhelmingly male-dominated military, even if it is unspoken.

This is where I think the root of the problem is. Recently, the military has implemented a campaign called “I Am Strong” that urges men and women to report cases of sexual assault instead of covering them up. While it is important to urge people to report cases, I think the Army needs to do this as well as  get to the source of the problem, which is the concept that if you are a victim of sexual assault, you are not being tough or strong. Sexual assault is a serious thing, and it can happen to anyone regardless of their moral, physical or mental strength. The Army should continue to promote the idea that sexual assault is something that will be handled just as seriously as it would be outside of the military. I also personally think that reporting a case like this makes the victim even more strong, because they are speaking out against everything that happened to them. However, this doesn’t seem to be the mindset in the military.

It is my personal opinion that women should be allowed to serve in the military, and they should not have to feel unsafe while they are serving just because of their gender. They should also not be made to feel like they have to conform to certain labels, because the truth is that women and men ARE different. Those differences should not, however, impact the ability of women to serve our country.

No woman should ever have to feel unsafe anywhere. I know that sometimes simply walking around campus at night can be a frightening thing for a woman to do–  I frequently ask for someone to walk me back to my dorm. Thus, I imagine being stationed in a foreign country where you’re surrounded pretty much exclusively by males would be of concern to any woman. I think that this is an issue that the Army needs to be more open about, and something that they are work proactively against.

 


9 Comments »

  1. […] So many women feel they need to overcompensate for their gender when working in the army, myself included even as a cadet, since discrimination against their capabilities is still prevalent even with the Pentagon lifting the ban on women in Military Occupational Specialties in 2013. This is on top of the sexual assault and harassment a disproportionate amount of female soldiers face from their own comrades. […]

  2. Alyssa Ardolino says:

    I think this is a very relevant issue, and I’m glad you’re addressing it. It’s shocking to me that any instance of sexual assault would be considered somewhat “trivial.” That women would think something so terrible as that is insignificant compared to other things is upsetting, yet I can see why they might have that mindset. They are just incredibly strong, and I guess they put our country first–which is very admirable. Still, it’s definitely important that they realize the severity of what’s being done to them. The implementation of the “I am Strong” campaign seems like a step in the right direction.

  3. Anna Wing says:

    This is such an important issue and I’m really glad you posted about it–I saw a 30 minute dramatization of the issue in a Youtube tv series with Troian Bellisario and Jennifer Beals a few months ago, and it was very striking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=JKYfdO5LFDs
    I think one of the serious issues that comes into play in the military is the devotion to a very strict chain of command and authority that makes it difficult for women to fight back against their superiors. In situations with such a rigid power structure women (and men) can often feel trapped and unable to deal with the issue without putting their own job at risk. It definitely needs to be talked about more!

  4. ctm5165 says:

    It is an interesting premise that these ladies are going over to put their lives on the line for us and their fellow soldiers (men or women) and that they get treated in such a shameful way. I believe you found an issue that many people skip over when thinking about the military and to be honest, kind of hides in the shadow of the “Don’t ask don’t tell” and homosexuals in the military. This is just as big of an issue as that if not bigger! This is something that people are being targeted by and potentially hurt over.

  5. Madison Miller says:

    I think that your post has so much exigence to recent reports and you showed great evidence to back up your claims. I especially liked your line: “I also personally think that reporting a case like this makes the victim even more strong, because they are speaking out against everything that happened to them. However, this doesn’t seem to be the mindset in the military.”

    My boyfriend is a freshman at the Naval Academy and I know how Naval officers are responding to this ongoing problem. He has attended around twelve sexual assault briefs in his time there already. These briefs are 2-3 hour sessions in which the students read cases, discuss, watch videos about the injustice and horrors of sexual assault. Many of these briefs were given before the reports came out, but the intensity with which the military is dealing with this issue increased after the reports. After the reports, he the majority of the briefs, and they also instituted a 24-hour watch on deck. Watch is when a student stands and watches to make sure that everyone is okay. They already have many different watches at places around campus, but now they have another one. The secretary of the Navy himself came to talk to the student and assure them that sexual violence would not be tolerated. The students have always had to “sign taps” before 11 saying that they are in the building and in their room for the rest of the night. I think that this issue is so hard to deal with and especially when the military already has strict rules and honor codes. Sexual assault should not be anywhere, but especially not in a place where people are trying to serve together to protect others.

    I can say that at least the Navy was infuriated by the number of sexual assaults and that they are taking steps to rectify these injustices. Hopefully these measures help, because I’m not sure how much more they can do.

  6. Conor Wynne says:

    Another post with perfect timing. Now that the Pentagon is integrating women in to the military now, an increase in sexual assault or the reports of it may occur. I feel as if there is a similar problem in sports also. In a male-dominated industry like the military or sports some men may feel entitled or obligated to get with the few women in that industry. This of course is a terrible view and hopefully the exposure of sexual assault in these industries will help reduce its rate.

  7. Samar Almarzooqi says:

    Your opening sentence of the last paragraph was beautiful. Ideally, no woman should ever feel in danger or be vulnerable simply because of her gender. It is eye-opening that in a country that prides itself on justice and the equality of men and women, the number of unreported rape/assault cases are so high in the military. I think that in order to fully address the issue and make sure that the proper steps are taken to ensure the safety of women in the military, the reported stories should not be swept under the carpet. I know that women feel the need to act as strong and tough as their male counterparts and I cannot imagine the type of emotions involved in being in the military as a female, but I also know that these charges should not ever occur in the first place. In a setting where they are in danger due to the chaos and rampage in some countries, the last thing on one’s mind should be their safety amongst their own.

  8. amc6291 says:

    This blog post was great. Personally, I’ve never seen a news broadcast or newspaper article discussing sexual assaualt in the military…which is sad. Because it is already such a struggle for women to compete with men in an established,male-dominant institution, it makes it even more difficult for women to stand up to their colleagues and commanding officers. You are right; it most certainly would make me feel weak and inferior if I had to report to another officer that I wasn’t strong enough to ward off one of my male counterparts. Sometimes I wonder if women are scared to say anything for fear that their concerns will be silenced in an attempt to “protect” the accused. WOuld the military cover up a sexual assault case in order to protect its own? I don’t know the answer to this, but I feel as if it is of concern to many female officers that are victims of sexual assault. I hope that more light is shed upon this issue. People need to be more informed that it IS happening. Males may be more abundant in the military, but that does NOT mean that they can do whatever they want. Respect is the key word!

  9. Sam Baskin says:

    I’m really glad your blog focused on this issue, because like you said, it isn’t always handled in the best way. I agree that there is more pressure on women in uniform to come across as “strong,” and because of this they are less likely to report incidents of sexual assault. I think the “I Am Strong” campaign is a good place to start helping victims gain the courage to come forward, however I don’t think it will reduce the amount of sexual assaults taking place. I’m pretty sure Anna had a passion blog post about this last semester, where she explained that our society teaches people “don’t get raped” as opposed to “don’t rape,” and there’s truth in that. Until we reframe our perceptions of sexual assault, we are going to have trouble moving forward in all aspects of society, including the armed forces.

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