The United States military branches of services have a serious problem just like the regular citizens of the country does in any city of America. However, the difference between our military services and the cities of America is that the cities of America don’t try to brush the assaults under the rug like they do in the military; this military culture is akin to the good ole boy network. Each branch of service has this issue so I am not going to pick on one over the other. The discussion will cover the statistics of this issue, demographics, class, ages of the woman and the audience the blog will be aimed for. This is not just a woman issue but this is the only group I am writing about for this assignment. Hopefully this will assist other woman in the military to get help with their assault and speaking up about it.
All woman want to do is to serve and be apart of the branch of service they joined.
According to Servicewoman Organization website, a civilian woman experience sexual assault is one in six while military woman goes up to one in three. Woman serving in the military since Vietnam have reported sexual harassment at 79 % of the woman serving. When woman are seeking VA Disability benefits for Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD), 71% woman reported an in-service sexual assault. 37% of woman veterans report being raped at least twice so they are not isolated incidents. 14% of the woman also has experienced gang rape. Some Black woman in the military also seems to get the unwanted attention more than white woman to include sexual coercion.
The dynamics of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment occur in any branch of the military are much different than a civilian. MST assaults often trigger powerful feelings of betrayal in survivors; deeply held belief systems about trustworthiness to fellow service members and respect for chain of command often hinder the reporting of the assault. This is why, woman service members feel that the MST is similar to incest, as perpetrators and victims are akin to family members because of spirit de corp.
Some woman don't even receive the health care they are entitled to because of their PTSD and being around men.
The perpetrators often outrank the victims so they often exert control over the victims; reporting the incident can be often is impossible especially when they are in the victim’s chain of command. In this case, victims often feel they will have to choose between reporting the incident so they can seek justice for their trauma and their military career. Commanders often neglect to enforce the protection of those who report MST and regularly blame the victim for ruining a “good soldier’s reputation”. They may also say to the victim that “what happened was No Big Deal” or you don’t want to cause conflict in the unit with this accusation.
Woman military members can’t just quit their job in the military or even try to sue the military for not enforcing sexual assault policies; as with civilian woman can do both of these options after the assault. Woman military members are forced usually to accept their situation while living in fear of future harassment or more assaults. Military members can’t sue the military because “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act does not apply to the armed forces” (Natelson, 2009, pp. 277-281).
It is clear that MST has been under reported for several years usually because the shame or fear instilled in them. They regularly have a fear of losing their jobs because they report the MST or of ruining the assailants reputation; they also experience severe guilt. Almost 75 % of the servicewoman raped in the military did not report the assault because they did not know how to make the report. However, 20 % of them thought the rape was assumed in the military.
The Department of Defense recently started a “restricted” MST reporting option for the victims; this gives them medical treatment for the MST but doesn’t allow pursuit of any legal actions against the assailants. Any evidence collected during the medical treatment is only kept for one year which complexes the military justice system. In the civilian world, 40% of the sex offenders are prosecuted, in the military world only 8 % is prosecuted.
Most woman are just as patriotic as men which is why they believe they will be safe when enlising in the military forces.
Victims of MST usually have a wide range of health and economic consequences because they are often long term especially if they don’t receive immediate treatment for a full recovery. The stress and depression are the main reasons affecting their economic stability. Woman with PTSD is usually because of the MST; they are also more likely to have an eating disorder. 40% of homeless woman is because of the MST because they have real issues trusting in men again in their life.
In conclusion, the United States military branches of services have a serious problem just like the regular citizens of the country does in any city of America however, it is called MST. However, the difference between our military services and the cities of America is that the cities of America don’t try to brush the assaults under the rug like they do in the military; this military culture is akin to the good ole boy network. Woman serving in the military since Vietnam have reported sexual harassment at 79 % of the woman serving. 37% of woman veterans report being raped at least twice so they are not isolated incidents. 14% of the woman also has experienced gang rape. Hopefully this will assist other woman in the military to get help with their assault and speaking up about it.
References
(2008). Actions Needed to Strengthen Implementation and Oversight of DOD's and the Coast Guard's Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Programs. US Government Accountability Office (GAO).
al, M. e. (2004). Prevalence of In-Service and Post-Service Sexual Assault among Combat and Noncombat Veterans Applying for Department of Veterans Affairs Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Disability Benefits. Military Medicine 169 (5), 392-395.
al., B. e. (2008). Comparing Sexual Harassment Subtypes among Black and White Woman by Military Rank: Double Jeopardy, the Jezebel, and the Cult of True Womanhood. Psychology of Woman Quarterly 32 (4), 347-361.
al., S. e. (2000). The Prevalence of Military Sexual Assault Among Female Veterans' Adminisitration Outpatients. Journal of Interpersonal Violence 15 (3), 291-310.
al., S. e. (2003). Factors Associated with Woman's Risk of Rape in the Military Environment. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 43, 262-273.
al., S. e. (2003). Factors Associated with Woman's Risk of Rape in the Military Environment. American Journal of Industrial Medicine (43), 262-273.
MST Fact Sheet. (n.d.). Retrieved Nov 25, 2014, from Service Woman Organization: http://servicewomen.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/SWAN-MST-fact-sheet1.pdf
Natelson, R. (2009). A Case for Federal Oversight of Military Sexual Harassment. Journal of Poverty, Law, and Policy 43 (5/6), 277-281.
Williamson, V. &. (2009). Invisible Wounds: Psychological and Neurological Injuries Confront a New generation of Veterans. New York: Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
