Increase of Sexual Assault
Students name
Institutional Affiliation
Increase of Sexual Assault.
The first major sexual assault scandal in the media was in 1996 at Aberdeen, proving grounds to today sexual assault and harassment that has been a problem in the army. Affiliates frequently question the SHARP program efficiency at all military positions due to the rise of sexual assault. The program is a result of the army sexual harassment, assault, and prevention. The army is formed based on preventing sexual harassment and sexual assaults before they transpire. SHARP has different measures to bring cohesion among the soldiers at all ranks, hence ensuring positive influence among them. The actions taken are to ensure respect in every member of the army. The essay outlines possible reasons why the sexual assaults continue to rise and the resolutions to the army SHARP program.
Alcohol is one primary reason why sexual assault occurs in most cases in the military department. Close alcohol associations are done in the army culture whereby the soldiers are known to consume a lot of alcohol. Despite this, its consumption is not allowed during working hours, and the government’s discouragement of high consumption is done. However, alcohol is permitted in social events such as platoon sanctioned events, for example, the barbecues and military balls, or simply in the bars. Some of the soldiers take in excess of the alcohol, which leads to the impaired judgment, which results in sexual assault in most cases. The victim and the attacker find themselves in an awkward situation brought about by excessive drinking. On a normal day, the two parties would not have been in such a case were it not for the high intake of alcohol. For instance, reports from the army, for example, in 2014, show that the military received a total of two thousand three hundred and thirty-five reports on sexual assault. In 2016 the number went up to two thousand four hundred and ninety-seven cases.
According to (Salim,2019) a stressful environment and loneliness in their military workplace also contribute significantly to increased sexual assaults. Some of the armies work far away from their families. Some members work in hostile environments, and hence their families cannot accompany them for security reasons. For example, according to Elisabeth Bumiller from New York worktimes in 2007 to 2008, the Kenyan and US army working in Afghanistan and Iraq shows an increase in the sexual assault rate in the military field. When the two members became close friends inside and outside work, it increases the chances of sexual assault in most cases. Military reports have clearly shown it is easier to get assaulted by members who know each other than vice versa. Some members have confessed to finding themselves uncomfortable with their colleagues, which has led to sexual assault (Lawyer,2019).
Moreover, they have little or no repercussions for the SHARP offenders after reporting them to the superiors in the chain of command. Thus, it causes an increase in sexual assault in the military system—the defense government. Annual Report, there was an increase in the year 2016 and 2017. Six thousand cases were reported, which increased to six thousand and seven hundred, respectively. After the victim says the sexual assault to the chain in command, there must be enough evidence to prove that it took place.
In most cases, due to lack of evidence, the attacker goes scot-free or, in most instances, gets a transfer letter. According to Andrew Tilghman, within six thousand reports in the US, nearly fifteen hundred are restricted reports which mean the attacker was not caught. Imaginably it’s very frustrating and psychologically damaging to the victim since justice is not served. The act encourages the assaulter to continue doing the same act since no action was taken.
The SHARP training program being conducted may not be effective since the leaders conducting the program are not efficiently trained to stop the sexual assault. Most leaders don’t practice what they teach, making it difficult for the other members to be prepared to follow. It leads to a lack of role models in the military, which causes mistrust among the members. In case of sexual assault, the victims in most cases may prefer to keep the information to themselves and not disclose it to the leader in command. The stigma that is associated with sexual assault is way huge than it appears. When the said leaders conducting the training decide to give out an example based on true stories, pointing out the people involved is not correct.
Intense training being done may not be realistic to the members hence becoming ineffective to the members. The usage of the training videos and the media in the SHARP practice may be baseless. It causes an unrealistic approach to the members, making the sexual assault training appear less practical in the real world. According to Inspector General, COL Wempe soldiers who underwent such training stated unimaginative and not realistic. As a result, the soldiers tend not to cooperate and lose concentration on the training due to boredom associated with the particular training method. It makes the soldiers became detached from the teachings and lose interest in the said subject. Besides, the leaders on the SHARP training should demonstrate a lot of confidentiality. Gossips and rumors should be highly discouraged between the members.
The government Holds all members in the command chain accountable for their members’ actions and actions. By doing so, the commander is answerable for any sexual assault cases presented. It ensures a chain of follow-up on the cases presented. Change in the military operation culture, ensuring that certain norms are modified, for instance, the excessive drinking culture, which is a leading factor to sexual assault. Providing training is conducted real and practical for the members; for example, the soldiers can form small manageable groups to discuss SHARP training issues. Last but not most minor laws against sexual assault should be strengthened; this will grant justice to the victims.
In conclusion, measures to stop sexual assault should be uplifted to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment. All military members should practice the usage of ACE, which is Act, Care, and Escort, and by endorsing this, sexual assault should be stopped. Leaders should know that the day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you stop leading them.
Reference
Canan, S. N., & Levand, M. A. (2019). A feminist perspective on sexual assault. Handbook of Sexual Assault and Sexual Assault Prevention, 3-16. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23645-8_1
Messman-Moore, T. L., & Salim, S. R. (2019). Risk perception and sexual assault. Handbook of Sexual Assault and Sexual Assault Prevention, 211-227. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23645-8_12
Holcomb, B. M., Mahoney, C. T., & Lawyer, S. R. (2019). Impulsivity and sexual assault. Handbook of Sexual Assault and Sexual Assault Prevention, 369-380. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23645-8_22