North Country Public Radio: Gillibrand optimistic for reform in military sexual assault cases
North Country Public Radio reports:
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand has been pushing hard to reform the way the military handles sexual assaults. Her proposal was dropped once, but she’s hopeful it will come up for a vote again and succeed.
Gillibrand says it’s hearing the personal stories of victims that has spurred her crusade. Sexual assault crimes are terrible in themselves – but she says the response is often equally appalling.
“When they reported these cases, their commanders said, ‘It’s your own fault,’ or, ‘He might not have been a gentleman, but it wasn’t a rape.’ These kinds of responses are not right, they’re not proper, and they’re not what our men and women deserve,” she said.
