Its interesting that for generations, the UK Ministry of Defence has failed to recognise that male military sexual assault victims actually exist, or that it has a duty of care to ensure that those victim/survivors have access to timely, trauma informed support and therapeutic interventions and/or compensation. Over in the USA it is estimated that about 10,000 men serving in the military have been sexually assaulted over the decades. Overwhelmingly, the victims are young and low-ranking. Like the veterans in this report, many struggle when they leave the military and have trouble accessing trauma informed support to help address their multiple and complex and unmet needs in civilian life.

In total we interviewed 30 male survivors of MST aged between 37 to 69 years. 17 veterans classed themselves as single, 10 were married and 3 were in a civil partnership. The majority of those interviewed had served in the Army 53.33% (n16) with 30% (n9) serving in the Royal Navy and 16.67% (n5) serving in the Royal Air Force. Average length of service across the sample was between 2-17 years.

Warning: The content of this report may be emotionally challenging for some people and the lived experience ‘first person’ narratives of sexual assault may be potentially triggering.

https://www.forward-assist.com/s/THE-INVISIBLE-MAN-PDF-Verison-10.pdf