WASHINGTON: A group of active and retired US troops gathered in freezingtemperatures outside the Pentagon on Monday to bring attention to sexualassault and harassment in the military.
The protest of about 30 people, most of them women and none in uniform,comes amid an ongoing wave of revelations about sexual misconduct in theworkplace that spawned the social media campaign with the #MeToo hashtag.
Sexual assault in the armed forces has long been a massive problem, withpersonnel reporting more than 20,000 allegations of sexual assault atmilitary installations over the past four years.
But many victims never report incidents, so the real number is likely farhigher, according to a Pentagon report that also found victims often faceretaliation for coming forward.
Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has sponsored legislation that wouldmake it easier for victims to speak out and “remove the systemic fear thatsurvivors of military sexual assault describe in deciding whether to reportthe crimes committed against them,” her website states.
Protesters at Monday’s event held placards supporting the legislation andcarrying slogans such as “Denial is not a policy,” “Stop the retaliation,”and “#MeTooMilitary.”
Pentagon spokesperson Colonel Rob Manning said the Defense Departmentendorsed the message of the protest.
“No one should have to tolerate harassment as a part of their militaryservice,” he told reporters.
“The Department of Defense continuously works to eliminate sexual assaultand harassment from the military and we encourage service members to reportall instances of sexual assault so we can provide support services and holdoffenders accountable.”
In a statement, the Pentagon said it “understands that it has an importantvoice in the national conversation about sexual assault and sexualharassment; we are committed to sharing our successes and challenges inhopes that what we learn can benefit US society as a whole.”