Military’s big jump in sexual assault reports: outrage or sign of progress?
The Christian Science Monitor reports:
Reports of sexual assault and rape are up 50 percent across the US military, according to a Pentagon report released Thursday – an increase that top defense officials acknowledge is “unprecedented.”
From 2012 to 2013, total reports jumped to more than 5,000, up from 3,400.
The news drew criticism from advocates for victims, who warn that the Pentagon report “highlights the severity of the military’s sexual assault epidemic.”
In response, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel issued several new initiatives Thursday, including some designed to reach out to men, who make up half of all victims of sexual assault in the military.
“We have to fight the cultural stigmas that discourage reporting and be clear that sexual assault does not occur because a victim is weak, but rather because an offender disregards our values and the law,” Secretary Hagel said. “Input from male victims will be critical in developing these methods and will be closely monitored so we can make them more effective.”
