In the United States children are taught that our country is the land of the free and the home of the brave. We are taught that our military is made up of a bunch of brave men and women who are putting their lives on the line to serve and protect us. While this is true, one question still remains, Who is protecting our female servicewomen in the military who have experienced sexual assaults/rapes by their fellow servicemen?
Discussions of sexual harassment and sexual assault issues in our country are becoming more and more common. However, I find it interesting that discussion of sexual assaults/rapes involving servicewomen in the military hardly ever made the news until the last few years. Everyday approximately 55 servicemen experience a sexual assault. While only 14.6% of the military are women serving, almost 95% of reported sex crimes taken place are made by women.
This brings me to another question, we have the statistics of reported sex crimes against women in the military, but how much more would the total number of sexual assaults increase if unreported cases surfaced? Research has proved that most underreporting is likely related to fear of retaliation by the perpetrator, jeopardizing their own careers, and being stigmatized by peers. It is also noted that most women who have experienced sexual assault/harassments do not feel comfortable reporting the incident because they must report to their chain in command, which potentially could be their perpetrator.
I would like to note that I am sure there are some policies regarding sexual assaults in the military and include how they are to be handled, however, due to the rise in reported sexual assaults by servicemen and women, there is obviously still an issue within the system. Our military must be more proactive and include more protections for our servicemen and women, as well as come up more effective solutions to prevent sexual assaults from occurring. They must also enforce harsh/concrete punishments for those found guilty of committing sexual assaults/rapes in the military.
Overall, I think there is a lot to be done to combat this issue and more research needs to be done. Military branches need to create a safe environment for our troops, and hold those who take part in these vicious crimes accountable. The government also needs to provide both service men and women with more resources in the event that the experience gender-based violence in the military.
Links to Sources for Op-ed info:
https://www.ywca.org/wp-content/uploads/WWV-GBV-Fact-Sheet-Veterans-Final.pdf
https://www.militarytimes.com/opinion/commentary/2021/02/11/call-to-end-gender-based-violence-in-the-military/
Hey, I like this post! We hear about violence in the military but it is often swept under the rug. I like how you went into depth with stats and described it.