Its Time For Men To Step Up to The Plate & Challenge Sexual Assault in The Military

Our recent interviews with women veterans and our ethnographic study ‘No Man’s Land’ indicated that women veterans are reluctant to report sexual harassment and assault whilst serving in the military. Many, sadly viewed it as a normal aspect of military service and it was only with the passage of time  that they accepted that the behaviour they experienced was unacceptable and for some deeply traumatising.

Some women, were told to just accept it as ‘part and parcel’ of life. Many of the women we interviewed said that after reporting assaults to senior officers, the problem was frequently minimised or dismissed as something they had brought upon themselves, either through their behaviour, excessive alcohol misuse or the way that they dressed at the time of the assault. Either way, the problem was almost always located with them and not the perpetrator. Advice ranged from telling women to ‘toughen up’ and stand up for themselves and forget about it, as taking it any further would negatively impact on their future career.

Since we published the No Man’s Land report in 2019 the response to the findings has been telling. Many men, especially those in positions of authority, struggle to accept or talk about this issue and are in denial as to the extent of the problem and choose to remain silent. As a result, many women feel that they don’t matter, they are not valued and whilst serving they have no rights.

The military has a problem, for decades many assaults have gone unreported. Its time men stepped forward to do the right thing and not side with a system that is both abusive and damaging. Not having the moral courage to call out sexual abuse and harassment for what it is really isn’t in the best interests of the military or the victims and survivors. Men must do more to support women during and after military service.

So how do we do this? Its actually a leadership issue and men and women in positions of authority, need in the first instance, to listen to the lived experience of those who have been let down by the system. Adopting a Catholic church approach to investigating current and historical allegations of abuse is not the way forward. Its time to stand up and challenge gender based violence at every opportunity and not turn the other cheek and think its not my problem. Siding with the institution or a dysfunctional system is an indication of silent complicity and by proxy promotes the abuse of human rights.

There are a few men out there who are not afraid to step up to the plate and intervene when others are acting abusively and we salute them, but leadership really starts with each and every one of us and we all need to make it very clear that the sexual abuse, harassment and gender based violence of any kind is unacceptable.

Like all change… it has to start somewhere.

Tony Wright CEO

Forward Assist