Sexual assault in the military has become one of the most controversial of all issues that have been discussed over the years. The topic has received extensive media coverage and has contributed to multiple media scandals. According to a Newsweek report done in 2011, women are more likely to be assaulted by fellow soldiers than killed in combat. The Department of Defense estimates approximately 19,000 sexual assaults occur per year amongst military personnel. That number is stifling considering that in the last year only 1,108 troops filed for investigation, and of those only 575 cases were processed. Out of the 575 processed cases only 96 went to Court Martial. Obviously from the numbers, sexual assault is a serious issue in the military. Much like in the civilian world there is bias when it comes to the guilt or innocence of the attacker, as well as the validity in the accounts of the accuser. I believe that the system in place may inadvertently contribute to the continuous rise in sexual assaults and that if this system isn’t fixed quickly, it will be detrimental to the organization as a whole. Sexual assault has seriously negative impacts on service members and their families. That impact carries over to their work, limiting mission readiness, and undermining national security.
The current military system is based on obedience and respect for authority. From entering boot camp where personnel are mentally reconditioned to be a soldier, airman, or sailor in the United States Armed Forces, they’re taught that following orders comes before personal feelings or beliefs. Following orders is paramount to accomplishing a mission and ensuring that the job is done correctly, and that what you think or feel isn’t worth shari...
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...tly, what motivates victims to report assaults through the proper channels? Victims get the impression that because they lack rank, they won’t be heard. As stated before, a soldier’s job is to follow orders and their opinions, beliefs and feelings having a far lower precedence over their work performance and ability to do their job. With no confidence in the system that is supposed to protect the victim and prosecute the accused, the cycle will continue. Flaws in the current system of doing things leave personnel vulnerable to predators. That vulnerability not only weakens the strength of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response program, but I believe it also weakens the military as a whole. With the increases, it seems that we get weaker and weaker with the years to come. Something needs to be done before that weakness becomes more evident to our enemies.
The Army currently has an ethical code ebodied in the Army Values, which provides guidance to the individual and the organization. These values are universal across the Army regardless of an individual’s personal background or religious morals. Professional Military Education schools teach the Army Ethic and evaluation reports for leaders affirm this ethic. The Army punishes individuals, especially leaders, who violate this code. The Army administratively punishes Soldiers who do not adhere to this code, and the severity of punishment increases with rank. One recent and highly visible example of this is former General Petraeus’s adultery and the subsequent professional sanctions he experienced. The Army gr...
... The General Accounting Office concluded in a hearing on May 8th 1999 that combat inclusion is the greatest impediment to women attaining higher military rank. Until qualified women are given access to assignments that are central to the militaries mission, they will be marginalized. Sexual harassment is a huge problem
In the surveys they have referenced in the article, it displays military sexual trauma increases among women during and after military deployment of unwanted sexual contact in recent years. The authors have recruited and conducted of twenty-two US servicewomen telephone interviews from May 2011 to January 2012 to participate a qualitative study with or without their MST experiences. They asked the participants questions regarding about MST during deployment and other factors which are disturbing their reporting and accessing to services against the perpetrators. The issues of sexism, high stress levels, and failed military leadership contributing factors which put these servicewomen in jeopardy of MST. Some of the interview women said that servicewomen do not report MST due to lack of support from peers, unreliable confidentiality, stigma, and other barriers. The interviewees feel more comfortable opening to medical care services after deployment in the United States that grips with sexual assault cases than throughout deployment around the world. The participants have suggested to improving the MST services: by increasing awareness, prosecution, investigation, cultural shift, and independence service providers. The interviewees recognized that Military se...
Sexual harassment is a tremendous problem in our society that for years has been hushed. But recently this problem has been brought to public attention, and the government has passed laws that make sexual harassment in the work place a criminal act. However, only futile attempts have been made at eliminating such misconduct in the military. The effects of the aggressive treatment that women experienced during Operation Desert Storm were noted by Elaine Connely, Executive of the Coalition for Military Readiness:
There are some opponents of the ban of women fighting in combat that say that having women and men together in war may lead to women accusing the men of sexual harassment, and it can happen, and it has before. All women that fight in war claim that it is a problem happening persistently, not stopping. It happened to a female soldier in the navy. She claimed she was being sexually harassed by shipmates. She reported one man that just would not stop harassing her and then she waited for him to be brought to justice. Some people say that they have seen commanders “look away” when women reported being sexually harassed, meaning that ...
When a victim comes forth, it takes a lot of courage. Unfortunately, administration treats them like as if they confessed to a crime to the assaulter. Administration has swept their problem away by suggestions such as advising them not to go to parties, not wear skanky clothes, not to drink, and to sympathize with the perpetrator. This form of victim blaming can discourage them, making them feel worse, like as if they were wrong. “Sasha Menu Courey, the University of Missouri swimmer, told a nurse, a rape crisis counselor, a campus therapist, two doctors and an athletic department administrator that she was raped, but no one did anything about it. Sixteen months after the attack, she killed herself.” stated by Petula Divork, a columnist for The Huffington Post, “You can’t blame sexual assaults on clothing, flirting, binge drinking or parties. Even when you take all that away, there are still smart, clean-cut, young evangelical men who think they have a right to women’s bodies. It’s not about women stopping an attack. It’s about men learning that they never had the right to begin one.”
The military has become the epicenter for rape and abuse of women, all of which military officials have swept aside with all too little concern. Case after case of rape and sexual harassment are dismissed with little to no investigation made. The women of the military live scared of their male superiors and colleagues, and what they might do. Victims of sexual harassment or rape often see their pursuers honorably discharged and returned to society with no criminal record.
The soldiers at My Lai were in an environment conducive to obeying orders. They have been trained to follow the orders of their commanders; respect for authority is weighed heavily upon. It is hard for them to disobey because they have been integrated into the social structure of the military and when in the middle of a war they would have nowhere to turn if they choose to disobey the orders of their commanders. The consequences of disobedience for them could be sent to death. A classic example of the power of authoritative factors is provided by Stanley Milgram’s
There are many solutions that have been tried to prevent women abuse in the military, but many of them have failed. For example, the government, a few years ago made it clear that they were not going to tolerate any harassments from anybody, yet they did not keep their word.
The statistics clearly show a group of people who’re affected by the heinous acts of sexual assault. Everyone knows that sexual assault isn’t a topic that’s on the top of the list to talk about; people usually even try to go as far as to hide it or to cover it up. Though, it’s clear for certain; covering something up doesn’t make it alright – It won’t make it go away and the problem is still there. For that exact fact, it is the very reason that sexual assault is something that needs to be brought to the
What do Americans hope for when they send their young men and women to serve their country? Some will say justice and duty; others will hope that their loved ones gain respect and responsibility. But the overall idea that Americans want for their sailors and soldiers, whether overseas or on land, is safety. Safety from harm and from unnecessary evils that may be present in whatever zone they may be entering. What if that idea of safety was a farce? What if the very people we have sent to protect us, are becoming victims, help just a fleeting hope? America’s military is experiencing this epidemic currently. The epidemic is known as sexual assault. The commanding officers in charge of protecting our armed forces from undue violence can, in fact, be the ones hindering their safety and justice based on a myriad of discriminations. Sexual assault cases need to be taken away from military authorities and put into the hands of the civilian justice system to avoid unfair trials and mistreatment of victims. In turn, the results will offer victims and perpetrators fair trials and a chance to be heard.
The purpose of this essay is to discuss the issue of rape and sexual assault in the military. The number of attacks for rape and sexual assault in the military are at an all-time high. Women have recently been allowed to fight on the front line. While this may be a huge achievement for women-kind, for this woman, it is a very scary thought. I am a junior at Texas Academy of Biomedical Sciences; a school geared towards students wishing to enter the medical field. I may be forced to join the military one day if a war breaks out and women are needed to protect the country. I would be happy to serve my country if I did not have to be scared of my fellow soldiers. Rape and sexual assault are major issues in the military and have been for many years without much effort to decrease the attacks. I am suggesting that unless the rape and sexual assault issue is fixed, the amount of people joining the military, specifically the women, will decrease greatly.
One of the reasons the united states does not actually fully have equality because women aren't allowed in the infantry. The government, parents, and other citizens are afraid the women would be sexually assaulted if they are allowed into the infantry. But just because the women want to become part of it, they should not be punished for something they know the consequences of and should not be punished for something they can’t have any control of. In an article written by a male cation for the marines established to the public, “...however, this is a narrow view of looking at a larger problem of sexual assault and harassment this is prevalent throughout all sectors of the U.S. Society, and we should not punish women ( the vast majority of victims) by keeping them out of the infantry because they could become victims”( Hovey). Women should not be held back for something just because a guy cant control himself. Our parents also want for their children to grow up, be successful as adults. But even as
In Women in the Military, Janette Mance explores the debates and problems faced by the increasing number of women involved in the military. After examining issues such as pregnancy, sexual harassment, and rape, Mance concludes that as a society we must continue to strive for gender equality.
have no backbone. If a Soldier or civilian has no self-discipline then they are failing