Sexual Assault and the Military: When Will the Pentagon Take Action?

Women make up 20% of all new recruits and more than 11% of the forces deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. These women's honorable service and incredible heroism in combat should be noted, and celebrated. They deserve tremendous credit for their service and sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan.

But sadly, I'm here to talk about a different threat facing women in the military -- a threat not from insurgents, but from their fellow service members. Women in the military cope with significant and underreported sexual assault and harassment:

"It took Diane Pickel Plappert six months to tell a counselor that she had been raped while on duty in Iraq. While time passed, the former Navy nurse disconnected from her children and her life slowly unraveled.

Carolyn Schapper says she was harassed in Iraq by a fellow Army National Guard soldier to the extent that she began changing clothes in the shower for fear he'd barge into her room unannounced as he already had on several occasions."

The rates of assault are shocking. Almost one-third of women veterans say they were sexually assaulted while in the military. (In the general population, one out of every six American women has been a victim of a sexual assault.) Already, 15 percent of female Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who have gone to the VA for care have screened positive for Military Sexual Trauma. But even these troubling figures may not be telling the whole story; experts estimate that half of all sexual assaults go unreported.

It's the Pentagon's job to ensure our troops are protected, and they are failing miserably here. For anyone who followed the body and Humvee armor scandals of a few years ago, it should be no surprise that the Pentagon has been dragging its heels on responding to this threat. A special DOD "task force" on sexual assault in the military was created almost 4 years ago -- but it has yet to convene for a single meeting.

The official response to individual cases of assault is also unsettling. In 2007, only 8 percent of sexual assailants were referred to courts martial, compared with 40 percent of similar offenders prosecuted in the civilian court system. And the latest assessment by the Government Accountability Office on the military's sexual assault prevention and response programs offers another stinging critique. Among its findings, the GAO concludes that:

• Mandatory sexual assault prevention and response training is not "consistently effective."
• Shortages of mental health care providers limit victims' access to mental health services.
• There is no directive from the DOD on how to operate the programs in a deployed environment.
• The DOD has not developed an oversight framework to evaluate whether the programs are working.

Last Thursday, Congress gave the Defense Department an opportunity to defend its efforts at a House Oversight Committee hearing. Instead of acknowledging the program's shortcomings, Pentagon officials directed the head of their Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO) not to appear at the hearing. This is scandalous. And demonstrates a blatant disregard by the DOD for the hundreds of thousands of sexual assault victims and their families. Secretary Gates and the President should respond immediately. Thankfully, Congress has the power to subpoena -- which means unless the Director of SAPRO appears before the Committee, she risks being held in contempt of Congress, and even the possibility of jail time.

What happened to taking care of our own? Our military brass seems to have forgotten that rule -- one that I learned as a private in Basic Training -- and a rule that American servicemembers have upheld for generations. It's a sad day when one of the military's proudest traditions, the commitment of servicemembers to protect and defend one another, must be enforced by Congressional subpoena. We can and must do better.

Comments

[Jigglypuff]

Thanks, Mr. Rieckoff, for writing the above article. I am disheartened, appalled and disgusted that our military women are being assaulted, raped and even killed by their fellow military members. Your article also reminded me of Pfc. Lavena Johnson and the petition to investigate her brutal death and its apparent cover-up. Something must be done to uncover these crimes and protect our own.

[Jander]

And where is Hillary Clinton - Purported fighter for womens rights?

[luziannagirl]

If we accept as givens that:

a) though it's under-reported, we know from reports that are made, that the rape/sexual assault rate of men troops against women troops is alarmingly high, and,

b) as one commenter posted, it's more about the rapists' need to establish a dominance hierarchy over the weaker individuals than about sexual gratification, and,

c) it's widely established that women report and seek treatment/redress for all physical and personal type problems much more often than men, then,

I just have to wonder how many man-on-man sexual attacks occur amongst the ranks of the military, both reported and un-reported.

Now, ball-breaking a story like THAT would be likely to be met with a little more high-brass action and a lot less ya ya about what to do with the girly-girl whiners. A story like that would threaten to bring down the entire military system, since no mother in their right mind would encourage her son to volunteer for that sort of duty.

I mean, we saw what the man-on-boy/man sexual exploitation scandal did to the Catholic Church.

Hey---just another outside-the-box thought. No pun intended.

[Gunfighter]

Same as it ever was... I enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1981, when I was 17 years old. The sexual assaults that we are hearing about now, are no different than the ones that were taking place back then.

Unfortunately, women service members are discouraged from reporting these things. It isn't that they are officially talked out of making reports... it's that military culture hates the "whiner" No one wants to be labeled a whiner and it's doubly true when it comes to women. There is already an incredible bias against women in the armed forces to begin with, and so women who serve are less likely to do anything that will draw negative attention to themselves, lest they be branded as a complainer.

My father was a cereer service man, as was my brother. I served for eight years. When people ask me if my daughters will serve, I look them straight in the eye and tell them: "Not if I can help it!" and now you know why.

[TheHandyman]

It may seem callous, but anything that keeps people from joining the military is a good thing. As a Viet Nam Veteran I keep wondering how it is that with these things continually happen and with it in our consciousness that we still glorify people being expended as cannon fodder. The US has not been engaged in one justifiable military engagement since WW2. As long people willing to die for some esoteric reason then there will be people who will use them poorly to pursue their own selfish agendas. That parents, who should now better by now, continue to not only allow their children, but to also encourage them to go to some other country to protect the rights of Americans is an abomination. They will be lied to, they will not receive the where withall and support to protect themselves in a hostile environment, and heaven help them if they suffer harm because when they come home, unable to care for themselves, their govt. will turn their back on them. The only justifiable war is one where your own country is invaded or deliberatly attack by a foriegn country. This country has idly sat by and refused to become embroiled in Bosnia, (no oil) Darfur (they're only poor blacks) Burma (Chevron Oil) places that if I were younger I would volunteer to go and fight instead we invade countries and squander our own resources so other Americans can get filtier rich! Women, don't join! You will get no help!

[Petesdaddy]

I wonder why it is that the same people who say that gays shouldn't be allowed in the military because their presence creates "unreadiness" also turn their heads the other way when women are harrassed, assaulted, raped, beat up, and murdered by their colleagues. Doesn't the act of raping someone constitute more unreadiness than the fear that you MIGHT be harrassed?

[Sciguy]

Sexual assaults on women in the military will stop (maybe) when:

a) it becomes realized that women are human beings;

b) the military stops recruiting felons and other criminals.

[Moshe]

"When Will the Pentagon Take Action?"

I'm guessing January 2009.

It is shocking beyond comprehension that we can't even get the current administration to take things like sexual assault, food safety, government corruption, bank regulation, etc., seriously, but that is where we are.

And Congress is little more that a wet noodle in the evil soup that is now Washington politics.

Failing to protect young women in our military is worse than negligent. It's evil.

We need to pull the plug and drain the cess pool in Washington, starting with the White House.

January 2009 can't come to fast.

Keep up the great work Paul.

[TheIndependenceParty]

Thank you, Paul! You always stand up for our troops. For the first time in American History there is a citizen movement dedicated to caring for, paying for, and pushing back for our service women and men. A government committed to the same thing would be a welcome change.

As for soldier on soldier crimes, sexual assault must be brought to the top of the code, and enforced top down. Neither Gates nor Rumsfeld gave a damn for the women under their auspice in the services.

Were one of my daughters in the services, I would advise her to sleep with her weapon. Foreign enemies are easy to discern. It is often the "Domestic" sort that pose the greatest problem.

Court martial the commanders as well as those who commit these crimes against their fellow soldiers, and they would stop tomorrow.

[Ricsterzilla]

The military is still fighting to keep gays quiet in the military.
It seems they can't even get the heterosexual part right either.

[BillKen]

I joined the Corps in 1962 and can tell you the same crap that is happening now was happening then. No one wants to admit it but the fact is the military has been throwing their own under the bus for ages. My experience is that if it's a plus to run them down, then they will be run down. The senior military just can't deal with the real world and fear damaging the facade they have created. Their junior officers are scared
to say anything because they might get screwed. The military is a cutthroat place and pay back is rampant, thats why so many people just suck it up, (even when the complaint is justified) and say nothing.
Semper Fi

[bronceye]

It is so terribly sad. What is sadder is the remark about war caualties(so? They volunteered) reveals how they truly feel about the troops. Killed maimed and raped in a psychopathic need to be a "War President". A president of war is different than a war pres. Did he achieve fame or infamy? Depends, obviously ,on your investments and overall portfolio. Sorry for all who volunteered as they have become invisible dupes, like the Crusaders of years past. Sending people to war makes you immediately popular whether you're a Pope or a President. Remember bush approval ratings when he declared war? Now, just like the other Texas warmonger LBJ, he's done because he didn't win it. He had no need to win. He only needed the privacy, war powers and one reelection. No big deal, he can't run again. He has no interest in anything but getting away from that backstage lot in Crawford. 9/11 was the horse he rode for 8 years. How ironic, he's afraid of horses.

[Bobrobert]

A sad thought - maybe Bush and company don't care about our troops - because the
American people don't care about the troops.

Business as usual.

[JennyJay]

Any, and all females considering joining the armed services should read this article, and then find
something else to do with their time.
These are horrid statistics, and makes me sick that our males are still such uncivilized, barbaric creatures.

[mmoc]

So...I agree with the first part of your comment; " all females considering joining the armed services should read this article" but could not agree less about the second; "and then find¨something else to do with their time."!! ¨¨

As a female service member with 2 tours in Iraq and a tour to Afghanistan coming up very quickly, I hardly think avoidance is the answer. I've had additional duties as an Equal Opportunity Officer as well as a Unit Victim Advocate, part of the Army's answer to this mess, and think that simply saying that females should not join the military as a result of this horrible sexual assault problem is as good as saying "Assaulters and Harrassers...and all who ignore it- You've won!". I, for one, refuse to allow that to happen and will continue to serve my country proudly (and hopefully assault free) and will continue to encourage other female service members or potential service members to do the same!¨

[absurditiesandrealities]

You'd think there would be a place where folks could go to ask for help.

oh, wait:
http://www.girightshotline.org/

Stand up for your rights

[Marcia G. Yerman - Huffpost Blogger]

Thank you for this very important post. In April, I attended a panel at Women Center Stage in New York City about the experiences of military women. In what should have been a packed performance space, there was only a small gathering. There is still a lot of stories that need to get out.