As she began her career, StJohn discovered firsthand that there were some things about the military that she didn’t like. Foremost was the way in which women enlistees were treated. Secondary, was the institutional response to the behavior, “That’s the way it is.” Degrading conduct was not limited to verbal insults. It included coerced sexual relations with senior male staff—or else. While at technical school, StJohn outlined the circumstances as, “It was a given that you could be forced into sex with a senior officer or your career would be compromised, and possibly ruined.”

StJohn summed up the psychology behind the action with the clear statement, “It’s a conquering of each person—a way of putting a woman in her place to achieve a mode of submission.” Her female colleagues “knew the instructors who could hurt their careers, and acquiesced as a matter of survival.”

It happened to StJohn more than once.

Defining the situation for me, StJohn related how “her idealism had been crushed.” She pinpointed the nitty-gritty of what fighting back could do. It was made clear to her that any actions on her part would endanger the status of her hard-earned security clearance, potentially leave her with a dishonorable discharge, or have her tagged with a “personality disorder.” Most distressing for StJohn was the inference that her father’s career could be “tarnished.” StJohn noted, “I understood from childhood how the military works. The swipe of a pen can affect if you can get a job or buy a house.”

Cassaundra StJohn

StJohn departed active service at 22 because she realized that “things were not going to change” and that she was no longer able to be “a good soldier and keep my mouth shut.” She mentioned the comment written on her security clearance report which labeled her with the contentious description: “Non-Conformist.” As StJohn emphasized, “It wasn’t a compliment.” She chose to finish out the rest of her obligation by serving in the Air National Guard and the Air Force Reserves. StJohn clarified the difference between active and reserve duty in the 1980s saying, “It means that you don’t have to face the harassment everyday, and the military has no control over your life.”

Her father—unaware of the extent of her disillusionment or the malfeasance she had been subjected to—gave her the advice, “Keep your nose down and don’t rock the boat.”

After StJohn left active service, she had no luck finding a job with just a high school diploma. She tried college, but felt a disconnect with the students. At 26, she was ready to get back on the educational track, with the goal of achieving an MBA by the age of 30. By this time, she had two children and was working two jobs while attending classes. As she noted dryly, “Scrubbing toilets at a Texaco gas station can be very motivating.” She used funds from the GI Bill and fees from donating blood to pay the tab. By her third decade, she had caught up with her peers and began a career in advertising, marketing, and entrepreneurship.

StJohn’s “aha” moment didn’t come until March 2011, when she attended an event for women veteran entrepreneurs. None of the teachers had any experience with military life. Realizing that they were many resources for men who had served—but not for women—StJohn had an epiphany. She asked herself, “Why aren’t I doing this? Why am I waiting for the VA? I can speak a language that women vets understand.” In retrospect she observed, “It just hit me all at once.”

That was the beginning of F7 Group, which StJohn describes “as an organization that is looking through the windshield—rather than the rear view mirror.” The approach is grounded in seven basic tools of support: friends and family, freedom, foundation, function, focus, flexibility, and fundamentals.

StJohn is very clear that emotional issues around military service must be resolved before women can move forward. “We acknowledge the impact of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Military Sexual Trauma (MST), and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). With women driving trucks, being in special operations or combat zones, there is a high risk for potential hostile engagement. As StJohn underscored, the current military policy maintains there are no women in “direct hand-to-hand combat.” This has created a bureaucratic mess for those women suffering from the ramifications of TBI. F7 is actively supporting a change in legislation.

For the women it works with, F7 is vigorously trying to fill in the gaps around healthcare, employment, education and housing. Supporting and partnering with other groups that concentrate on these specific concerns, F7 functions as an information clearinghouse. StJohn sees plenty of room at the table for everyone’s work, advocating pulling up extra chairs rather than feeling competitive about existing seats.

StJohn has moved beyond her original concept of providing business boot camps for building entrepreneurial skills to the concept of personal retreats. She envisions “building a train from the uniform to the place that women vets want to be.” She expanded the profile of potential attendees from vets only, to others in the military family—such as wives and mothers. Welcoming those who served in Vietnam, along with younger women who were deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, the F7 premise is to eliminate the labels. StJohn outlined her approach as, “You take off your rank, your service, your era, and your role, and connect with the fact that the military is the common thread that binds us.”

The first retreat was held in October. The goal for 2012 is to convene quarterly, with three meetings in national locations and one in Texas. StJohn qualifies the gatherings as “looking at the heart side.” She speaks about “putting the past where it belongs,” while answering questions and redefining the self with other women who “have walked the walk.”

The need is there. StJohn quoted stats that illustrate female veterans are four times as likely to be homeless as other women. The total number of homeless women veterans in California, Texas, and Florida exceeds the amount of homeless female vets in the entire country. On the reason for elevated rates of homelessness among female vets, StJohn responded, “They’re proud, they don’t want handouts, and many are suffering with emotional problems and PTSD.” She also referenced figures showing that 70 percent of women vets experience some level of PTSD, and 38 percent of women vets “report” incidents of MST.

“Women vets get back here, and there’s no support,” StJohn said. She spoke about two women in the F7 program who had gone for services at the Dallas VA Medical Center. They described their encounters there as “nightmare experiences.” StJohn has scheduled the next F7 “Lone Star” retreat for April 2012, in Texas. Her goal is to serve 200 applicants.

“I know these women,” StJohn said. “I don’t want them to have to take twenty years to get to the other side. I want to help other women in the military family to go to the next step—with less pain and in less time than I did.”

Photos courtesy of F7 Group

Civil War Soldier, Michael Schwenke of 56th NY Infantry. Photo courtesy of HBO

It is a given that before a person is equipped to be part of a military fighting machine, he or she must be trained—physically and mentally.  What is not explicit is that upon a return to civilian life, there is no preparation for re-entry into the previous rhythm of life.

Hopefully, with voices demanding to be heard, the public, lawmakers, and other agencies will listen to the urgent calls to action that must be heeded.

The current situation for veterans is not new, just different. This Veterans Day, HBO is debuting a documentary entitled Wartorn: 1861-2010. Through interviews, personal letters and journals of soldiers, photos and archival footage, the 68-minute film traces post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) back to the Civil War.  At that time, survivors were labeled as hysterical, melancholic, or insane. In fact, it is noted that “after the Civil War, over half of the patients in mental institutions were veterans.”  In World War I, the condition was referenced as “shell-shock.”  During World War II, the term “combat fatigue” was euphemistically employed.  (Included in Wartorn is a scene with a group of World War II vets sharing their stories for the first time.  One man explains, “I had no one to turn to. No one understood.” Another reveals, “You’re just not coming home the same guy you left.”)

We now have the terminology and psychological insights to recognize the problem.  But are we doing any better?  When interviewed, General Peter Chiarelli, the Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army who is working to stem the rising tide of suicides states, “You’re fighting a culture that doesn’t believe that injuries you can’t see can be as serious as injuries you can see.”  In reality, Chiarellli points out, these are hidden wounds as serious as losing an arm or a leg.”  He adds, “We’ve got to get them off the battlefield.”

Suicides among veterans expanded by 26 percent from 2005 to 2007. That doesn’t include the veteran deaths that were the result of high-risk behavior.  More than 1,000 Vets in California under the age of 35 died after returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan between 2005-2008. Author and journalist, Aaron Glantz, succinctly outlined this problem in his article, “After Service, Veterans Deaths Surge.”  He wrote that the “figure is three times higher than the number of California service members who were killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts over the same period.”  He drilled down on the lack of response from the government when he appeared on the “War and Peace Report” hosted by Amy Goodman of Democracy Now.

What’s actually being done in a nuts and bolts way to support veterans? I checked in with America Works of New York, which serves veterans by offering psychological and substance abuse counseling, health insurance guidance, interview and resume preparation, and ultimately job placement. America Works is a for-profit company that is 100 percent performance based.  The staff saw an upsurge of veterans into their program approximately three years ago.  In 2008, they applied to the federally funded entity “Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program,” and were contracted to place 160 homeless vets in jobs within a year.  They reached their goal and got a follow up three-year contract.

The founders of America Works, Dr. Lee Bowes and Peter Cove, have taken their “work first” model, which originated in 1984, and tailored it to the needs of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan—at least one in ten of whom are unemployed.  In the 18-24 demographic the stats drop to one in five unemployed, as many enlistees join the service directly from high school—and are looking for a civilian job for the first time.

The facts put out by America Works explain that nationwide approximately 154,000 veterans are homeless each night. Foreclosure rates in military towns have been on the upswing of four times the national average.  In 2008, over 1.3 million vets were living in poverty.  Almost one million were unemployed. Over a third of incarcerated veterans have screened for PTSD.  In the New York City homeless vet population, approximately 85 percent is comprised of those who served in Vietnam and Korea.  Many vets move to New York, looking for services and employment they couldn’t find at home.

While I was at the offices of America Works, I had the opportunity to dialogue with Retired Navy SEAL Captain Pete Wikul, Vice President of America Works of Washington D.C.  Wikul served over 39 years in the U.S. Navy and was the “Bullfrog”—a title given to the longest serving Navy SEAL on active duty.  He shares the 1988 Nobel Peace Prize with all the Peacekeeping Forces who served in Lebanon from 1948-1988.

Outspoken, with lots of personality, Wikul was emphatic about the need to heal suicidal vets.  “That’s what I want,” he told me.  His figures related that seventeen to thirty-four vets commit suicide daily. “It is estimated by veteran suicide counselors that perhaps as many as three times as many veterans have taken their own lives than the number who died in the Vietnam War.”  He said, “The first greatest sin of this country was slavery.  The second is how it treats its military vets.”

For Wikul, the problem lies with the individual’s separation from the service.  He penned an op-ed with Bob Kerrey outlining the need to prepare vets for rejoining civilian life.  Wikul had definitive opinions on the crisis.  “The nation is responsible,” he said.  “I fault our political leaders.”  Referencing the lip service paid to the needs of veterans he emphasized, “I want to see the line item in the budget.  It’s the lawmakers that hold the purse strings.”  As a man used to accomplishing his mission, his frustration was palpable.  “We need analysis, and than a cure for this social ill.” Wikul recommends the America Works mantra of “work first and a rapid attachment to work” as a great leveler, and the way for an individual to maintain his/her self-esteem.

Looking at the issues from another perspective is Ryan Berg, a 28 year-old California based vet, who spent seven years in the Marine Corps.  He joined up because he chose not to be in an academic situation immediately after high school.  He wanted to be a leader.  He currently attends UC Berkeley on the GI Bill, where he is completing a four-year degree focusing on communications. He is the Founding Editor at WhatFits.org, whose mission is to “help build lasting veterans’ communities across the United States.” In addition, they house a news and opinion blog dedicated to the movement of building “real community” among the returning veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Berg has become proactive in seeking to build a “community” of veterans that is modeled on the support structure that was forged during time of service.  He described how during deployment, there was a “life saving mechanism borne out of the group experience.”  He believes that this core essence needs to be translated into a new language—to help vets adapt back into civilian life.  “The important thing to remember,” he said, “is that there is a specific sensibility that needs to be connected between vets.  We need support from those who are like us, people who have come out of the same experience.  We’re learning what this new mission we are on is. We need to feel as influential in civilian society as we did in the military.  We need the care of each other in order to start the new mission. The mission of coming home is a task we aren’t used to.”

For Berg, the most powerful prescription a veteran could receive is that of “community.”  He qualified it as follows: “It’s when we have a group of people that hang out and speak to each other in a different way, because of our lives. Whatever stage we are at in our coming home process, life begins to matter more as we speak the same language to others who are like us.” He continued, “It’s kind of like a family. Thinking about what’s next. It’s about guys and girls talking to each other. It’s the platoon mentality. It’s everyone having each other’s back.  Getting a veteran into a mental health appointment is nearly impossible without the encouragement of another vet.”

The need to connect to others who understand a shared history was repeatedly articulated in Wartorn.  The common denominator pointed to was the refrain “No one except a soldier can understand what a soldier has to endure.”

In 1946, William Wyler directed The Best Years of Our Lives, which won the Academy Award for that year’s top picture.  It told the story of three servicemen from the same small town trying to pick up the threads of their previous lives. Samuel Goldwyn decided to produce the film after he read an article about the difficulties experienced by men returning from World War II. The topics of familial disconnect, estrangement, and unemployment are captured in the scene below when former Army Air Force Captain Derry, who is afflicted with nightmares, wanders through an aircraft boneyard.

At the beginning of Wartorn, there is a visual quote by Homer from The Odyssey.  It reads, “Must you carry the bloody horror of combat in your heart forever?”

1861, 1946,  2010.

The time to do something is now.

On the pavement at the northeast corner of 54^th Street, a man dressed in combat fatigues was sitting behind a black plastic crate.  He was wearing dog tags, and on his shirt—at the right hand side of his chest—were three pins.  One designated sergeant’s status; another was a Marine Corps insignia. The third was the Stars and Stripes.  He had placed a backpack on top of the rectangular structure, along with an upside down military issue cap that held a few dollar bills and some loose change. Right next to it was what appeared to be a driver’s license.

It wasn’t.  When I looked at it more closely, I saw it was his Veterans Identification card.

He had none of the usual messages printed on a piece of cardboard, explaining his situation or requesting help.  There was just a simple tableau that people were bypassing at a mile a minute.  No one broke their stride.  There were no second glances. Nobody showed interest as to why he was on the street.

The former soldier came across as a rock amid a rushing stream.  He was anchored to his spot.  People flowed past him, but he was not acknowledged.  As I observed the scene, I turned to my teenage son and said, “I have to talk to him.”

I went over and said, “Hi, are you a vet?”  “Yes,” he replied.  “I served in Afghanistan.”  Reacting to the fact that I was interested in talking he offered, “The VA is holding up my benefits.  I went to see my Congressional representative up on 125^th Street to get some help.  When the VA found out, they told me that if I complained again my benefits would be ‘a long time coming.’ ”  Tears started to fill his eyes.  “My brother is over in Afghanistan now,” he added, his voice breaking.

I struggled between wanting to learn more and respecting his space.

“You should get in touch with IAVA—the veteran’s group,” I suggested.  “They have an office here in the city.  Have you ever seen their ad for returning vets?” I asked him.  He looked at me directly and said, “I haven’t seen television in over a year.”

I wrote down the information for him on a scrap of paper he had, using one of the pens he took from a neat row stitched into his backpack.  I fished my wallet out of my purse and opened it up, and put some money in his hat.  As my son and I started to walk away he called after us, “Have a happy Fourth of July.”

It was an unsettling experience.  As we rode home on the bus, I wondered how many others like him were struggling to survive—while waiting to get what was due to them from their country.

When I got home, I contacted the IAVA offices.  I knew they were front and center in the fight to help veterans readjust to civilian life.  Part of that included how to navigate the claims system.  Chrissy Stevens, Communications Director, told me by e-mail, “We have heard a lot of similar stories from our membership and that’s why we are pushing so hard on this issue on Capitol Hill. Vets in New York and across the country are waiting for far too long for benefits.”

Part of the IAVA 2010 Legislative Agenda is devoted to recommendations on how to modernize claims processing.  According to IAVA, the current method is antiquated—which accounts for “frequent errors, countless bureaucratic red tape, and a lengthy wait for benefits.”  In fact, the VA backlog is approaching one million cases.

While Americans are enjoying picnics, sales, and fireworks, too many of those who have served in our all-volunteer military are fighting a system that is supposed to help them.

I can only speculate on how many other men and women have fallen through the cracks…and where they will be on Independence Day.

On Thursday, May 20^th, a morning hearing was held. Healing the Wounds: Evaluating Military Sexual Trauma Issues, was presided over by John Hall (D-NY), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, and Michael Michaud (D-ME), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health.  A series of speakers drawn from veterans’ organizations, networks devoted to women’s health and sexual abuse, and representatives from the Department of Defense and the Veterans Health Administration were present.  They each had five minutes to offer testimony.

Just three weeks prior on April 29^th, Congresswoman Niki Tsongas (D-MA) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA) announced the introduction of the Defense Sexual Trauma Response, Oversight and Good Governance Act (The Defense STRONG Act), a bipartisan piece of legislation.  Hoping to attack Military Sexual Trauma (MST) from the front end of the problem, The Defense STRONG Act will work to strengthen the pre-existing systems to “prevent sexual assaults, and provide support and guidance for victims that do report an incident.”  This would enable those harmed to access a military lawyer in order to fully understand their legal options.  Equally important, it will standardize training guidelines around MST prevention and response across all branches of the services.  When I spoke with Rep. Tsongas by telephone she explained that the act would be part of the Defense Authorization Bill (H.R. 5136), and would put a “system in place patterned after the Equal Opportunity measures.”  She said, “If a victim speaks with a victim’s advocate, it will remain confidential.  It can’t be subpoenaed.”   Tsongas added, “I’m looking forward to making sure this language stays in the bill.”

Witnesses drilled down and pinpointed problems being faced by MST survivors as circumstances presently stand.  A wide range of symptoms, on the physical and emotional continuum, was referenced.  They included: mood disorders, depression, substance abuse, adjustment disorders, hypertension, eating disorders, sexually transferred infections (STI), unplanned pregnancy, self-destructive behaviors, and suicide.  It was noted that 75 percent of homeless female veterans have been sexually assaulted.

A sexual attack is a trigger for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  Susan McCutcheon, The Director of Family Services, Women’s Mental Health and Military Sexual Trauma, Veterans Health Administration (VHA) stated, “MST is an experience, not a diagnosis.  PTSD is the diagnosis.”

The FBI ranks rape as the second most violent crime after murder.  Repeatedly, those testifying underscored that rape is an act of violence, not sexual desire.  It was acknowledged that males in the military are casualties of MST as well as women.

For those assaulted, career goals are disrupted as they face “isolation, retribution, ostracism, and accusations.”  Their situation becomes untenable, as they must continue to live and work in close proximity with their attackers.  As Helen Benedict, author of The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq, testified, “some 90 percent of victims never report assaults within the military because the culture is so hostile to them.”  She explained how the victim is treated like a perpetrator, and in addition to not being believed, “they are intimidated out of pursing justice.”

Phyllis Greenberger, President and CEO of the Society for Women’s Health Research, told the committee that “women are the fastest growing sector of VA patients,” with “15 percent of women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan experiencing sexual assault or harassment.”  23 percent of the women using the VA services have reported MST, yet half of all cases go underreported. Jennifer Hunt, Project Coordinator, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, observed that the “majority of assailants are older and of a higher rank than their victims.” It is recognized that those who get immediate full care do the best.  Yet when women feel re-traumatized in their efforts to get help and in navigating the system, it makes moving forward problematic.

There was no lack of suggestions on how the situation could be improved. At the top of the list was the need to eliminate mixed-gender care settings. Creating separate facilities was put forth as the optimum goal.   Using a civilian rape crisis model, which is not geared to a predetermined agenda, was another proposal.  Women report a dearth of properly trained personnel, with those in counseling positions resorting to what has been termed “pills and pep talks” (despite the fact that women are not responding well to commonly prescribed medications).

Benedict put forth promoting more women and distributing them across the forces to eliminate isolation, and rejecting recruits with a history of sexual violence. Greenberger dryly offered, “No victim should have to chase after their own care.”

Scott Berkowitz, President and Founder of RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network) sited a lack of “institutional support, leadership commitment and resources” to fix the problem and a commitment by base commanders and Pentagon Brass to “zero tolerance and routine prosecutions.”  He did, however, comment on the progress that has been moved forward under the auspices of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO), which was established in 2005 by the Department of Defense “to function as a single point of accountability and oversight for sexual assault policy.”

Kay Whitley, the Director of SAPRO, addressed prevention through training, treatment, support of victims, and system accountability.  She related that during the past three years, reports of sexual assaults had increased by 10 percent annually.  Whitley broke the best-case protocol down into “care, reporting, response, and tracking.”

Getting appropriate and timely medical care is only part of the problem.  Steering PTSD claims through the system is formidable, and often exacerbates the original trauma.  Joy J. Ilem, Deputy National Legislative Director for Disabled American Veterans, was very clear about the obstacles. She informed those in attendance, “to receive disability compensation from an MST-related condition…the standard of evidence is stricter than for combat injuries, or even for military occupational injuries. She characterized veterans’ compensation claims for disabilities resulting from MST as “an uphill battle for VA Disability Compensation,” explaining that “if an assault is not reported by the victim during his or her military service, establishing service connection later on for disabling conditions related to MST can be daunting.”

The different aspects of reporting an attack and trying to receive benefits are complex at best. Bradley G. Mayes, Director, Compensation and Pension Service, Veterans Benefits Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, offered that there was “room for improvement, but we have taken steps.”  However, many concerns have to be taken into account, particularly as confidentiality is a paramount concern.

I contacted Thom Wilborn, a spokesman for Disabled American Veterans, to speak further about the two options for filing an MST report, via a Victim Reporting Preference Statement DD FORM 2910. He clarified the two different types of reports that service members can file after an attack.

• Unrestricted Reporting – Reporting a Crime which is Investigated
• Restricted Reporting – Confidentially Reporting a Crime which is not Investigated

A restricted report allows the victim to receive health care services, but the paperwork does not enter the realm of an official charge – thereby protecting the privacy of the victim.  It does not involve the chain of command.  In an unrestricted report, all records become public.  The information goes out to the commanding officer and division commander for a formal investigation.

A problem arises when a service member, who wants to apply for PTSD benefits and has filed a restricted report, can not get their records from one department agency to another.  Wilborn told me, “There needs to be a way to report MST and be able to advance it to whatever point the service member wants.”  He made clear that the report should be able to remain confidential, while simultaneously recorded in a way to be available for disability claims. The DAV’s primary concern is that the Department of Veteran’s Affairs be able to access restricted Department of Defense Documents.

Following the testimony, I contacted two of the invited presenters.  Jennifer Hunt, Project Coordinator, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, believed that “good steps have been made, but more must be done.”  She specifically pointed to “inter-operability” encompassing improved communication between the Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration.  She remarked on how many people were in attendance for the hearing, and lamented that that there was no time for follow up questions due to the President of Mexico’s visit.

When I spoke with Anuradha K. Bhagwati, Executive Director of Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) and former Marine Captain, she was quite concise in her evaluation of how things stand and what needs to be done.  She said, “The Veteran’s Benefit Administration (VBA) simply does not understand how traumatic it is for an MST survivor to file a claim for compensation. The Veteran’s Administration (VA) is coming from a theoretical place.  Their system is great on paper. The VA has made overtures, but their claims officers are poorly trained.  The system is broken.  Even if victims submit evidence of trauma, it’s not enough. The VA has not been able to get up to speed.  Their services work for some people, but they are in the minority. We need people to come forward in order to prosecute offenders, but right now DOD cannot guarantee the safety of survivors. Most commanders do not handle complaints responsibly. The fact of the matter is that survivors are not sufficiently protected.

There seems like a giant abyss.  It doesn’t seem like VA is talking to MST survivors or MST advocates. MST is best understood by MST orgs (VETWOW, stopmilitaryrape.org, militarysexualtrauma.org). SWAN is advocating for third party oversight. We believe a long-term solution is to apply Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to the military.  Service members need to have the option to sue the military, if the military doesn’t protect them. Without that, commanders have no incentive to protect survivors. The Defense STRONG Act deals with the current system as we have it. It will fix some really broken pieces of the SAPRO reporting system, but it only deals with part of the problem.”

At the conclusion of Bhagwati’s testimony, she paid homage to the women from previous generations who had “suffered at the hands of fellow servicemen decades ago” – with their ordeals still yet to be recognized.  She read into the record the request of a Vietnam-era veteran who had survived MST.

The sentence was a clear but simple appeal.  “Please help me feel validated before I die.”

This article originally appeared on the website Women Make News.

Four women’s narrative strands are followed in the documentary.  One of these is related by the family of Tina Priest, who is dead.  As her mother and twin sister are shown cleaning Tina’s headstone and tending her grave, they talk of how she died in Iraq.  They were notified by the Army that the cause was a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.  Her mother makes clear, “I don’t know how she died, but I want to know how.”  In a letter written from Tina to her mother she confides, “He raped me, but if he gets set free, he will beat me to death or murder me.”  Two weeks after Tina’s death, a military court ruled that she had never been raped and was not killed. An independent ballistics specialist hired by Tina’s family believes the “Army is hiding the truth.”  The narration states that in 2006 there were 3,000 complaints of rape and attempted rapes, with less than 2 percent of the aggressors going to court.  As Gallego said to me by phone, “War is not an excuse.”  She used the phrase “impunity” to characterize the laxity of the military’s response.  She suggested the problem has increased with more soldiers on the ground, and added, “but it’s really an old issue.”

This was borne out by my interview with a woman who identifies herself publically as PB Rose, an alias she uses to write for the site Veterans Today.  She related her situation of having been “savagely raped” in 1989.  She was a 21-year-old Cadet in an ROTC program at Fort Bragg.  On an extremely hot day, she accepted the offer of a ride in an air-conditioned car from a Master Sergeant in his mid-forties.  He had always presented himself to her as a “father figure.”  He beat her when she resisted, and then raped her.  She didn’t file a report until 2008 when as part of her healing process and psychological acknowledgement of the ordeal, she filled out the paperwork.  Rose believes she was not the NCO’s last victim and told me, “He could have killed me and dumped me, and they would have written me off as AWOL.”  None of this jived with the motto she had learned in the service: “Mission first, people always.” Rose’s advice to women who have been assaulted is, “As soon as it happens, have a rape kit done – even if you have to pay.  Transfer out of the unit to a different state, and then file your paperwork.”  Suffering from PTSD, Rose went to VA facilities, but found that the services were “inequitable,” and “second-class to what the men received.”   She didn’t feel safe in the environment, and eventually opted to pay out-of-pocket for private counseling.  She explained, “The minute I walked into that [VA] building, I was on guard.”

Kira Mountjoy-Pepka, Director of Pack Parachute Charity, informed me that this was not unusual.  “The MST community is alienated and pushed aside in the military, and then in the Vets community.  Deliberate outreach is absolutely essential.”  Her organization offers a space that is neutral and specifically non-military.   In discussing MST, Mountjoy-Pepka hammered home the point that what happens is a two-part trauma.  After the initial act, persecution follows, and a continuum of symptoms including shame.  She constantly hears from victims that “the aftermath is even worse.” Although Mountjoy-Pepka believes that the “VA is doing the best it can,” she understands why most people cannot re-enter the military setting to access services.  Pack Parachute Charity offers direct financial support to former members of the military with MST who reside in Washington State.  Claims for financial compensation can be overwhelming and impossible to navigate.  When those who have suffered have their claims denied, Mountjoy-Pepak indicates, “They feel rejected all over again.” (It is important to note that Pack Parachute Charity has been actively helping men who have been victims of MST, for whom the facilitation structure isn’t set up.)

The voices against these horrific acts are gaining traction.  One of the constants in the conversation is twenty-four year veteran of the U.S. Army and U.S. Army Reserve, Ret. Colonel Ann Wright.  She said at a Code Pink rally recorded in Rape in the Ranks, “You need an independent team to do investigations.  You have to keep pushing them [the military]…You have to be in their face all the time, and if you’re not – nothing will happen.  Wright was part of an action that took place on October 13^th in New York City, in front of the Armed Services Recruiting Station in Times Square.  She was joined by playwright/activist Eve Ensler and Staff Sergeant Sandra Lee of the U.S. Army Reserves, who spoke about how she was raped twice in Iraq in 2005.

October 12th-16th was Military Rape Awareness Week, and several organizations were on board for the implementation of activities.  Data was put out to the media including: 1 in 3 women in the military have been       raped or assaulted; 37 percent of victims are raped multiple times; 14 percent are gang raped.  Michael T. McPhearson, Executive Director of Veterans for Peace, conveyed by phone, “It’s a societal problem that magnifies itself in the military.  In order to change the military, we have to change the larger society.  Men have to step out and make other men accountable.”

On November 7^th, veterans with Military Sexual Trauma marched in the Auburn Veterans Day Parade in Washington State for the first time.  On November 11^th, in downtown Seattle, Veterans with MST will be honored at the Garden of Rembrance at Benaroya Hall.  Participating groups will include VetWow, Pack Parachute Charity, Vietnam Veterans of America, Veterans for Peace, and Disabled American Veterans.

As more awareness is raised about Military Sexual Trauma, the national consciousness should encompass advocating for veterans – and those currently serving –who have MST.  It is time for them to get the assistance and justice they deserve.

Additional Resources:

Coalition Against Sexual Assault in the Military Services (CASAMS)

Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN)

Grace After Fire

“Factors Associated With Women’s Risk of Rape in the Military Environment”(Anne G. Sadler, Brenda M. Booth, Brian L. Cook and Bradley N. Doebbeling – American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 2003)

Department of Veterans Affairs – Center for Women Veterans

Department of Veterans Affairs – Women’s Trauma Recovery Program

Enmeshed in the stories of women who have served in the military, are the accounts of sexual harassment and abuse that are starting to see the light of day. The issue of Military Sexual Trauma (MST) has consistently been swept under the rug.

At a House Committee hearing on Female Veteran’s Affairs held on May 20th, it got an airing. The oldest veteran present, Josephine Anton, served as a member of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) during World War II. When Rep. Timothy J. Walz (DFL-Minn.) asked the assembled panel if there had been any progress on the problem of sexual assault in the armed services, the general consensus was negative.

Jen Hogg, former Army Sergeant and Associate Director of the Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN), was present in Washington to listen as Anuradha Bhagwati, former Marine Corps Captain and the Executive Director of SWAN gave testimony. Bhagwati discussed female vet’s health care benefits, and the current policies regarding treatment of MST victims. In a pre-hearing press release Bhagwati stated, “Female veterans leaving the military with physical and psychological wounds from service are being treated like second class citizens by the Department of Veterans Affairs.” Her on-site testimony was even more damning, as she related elements of her own experience:

“As a regular patient at the Manhattan VA Hospital for the last three years, I am intimately experienced with the trials of receiving quality health care and benefits from the VA for both physical injuries and psychological wounds, including Military Sexual Trauma (MST). The last place many survivors of MST want to go for treatment or counseling is a VA hospital. My first trip to the Manhattan VA Hospital was a nightmare. I felt like I was running a gauntlet as I stepped into the lobby and was confronted by a sea of hostile faces, all of them male. Most veterans and VA employees assume women veterans are secretaries, wives, or cleaning staff. Many employees refuse us the common courtesy and professional service that they extend to male veterans. The first psychiatrist I saw rolled his eyes at me when I told him I needed to talk to a female doctor. The MST counselor was too overbooked to take me on as a patient. A physician was so shocked that I had been a Marine that he told me I looked like a ‘shopkeeper.’ I’ve been lectured and counseled by dozens of nurses, many of them women, who feel that they are at liberty to talk to female veterans in an unprofessional manner. When I shared my frustrations with the women veterans’ coordinator, she told me I “should be happy to have free health care.” To add insult to injury, despite the detailed evidence I submitted supporting service-connected trauma from MST – including witness statements from an Equal Opportunity investigation that the Marines by policy destroyed two years after the fact – the VA rejected my claim. At that point I had to make a difficult choice between appealing my claim and having my trauma dragged on for several more years, or giving up. Being a veteran is already a full-time job.”

I spoke by telephone with Hogg, one of the ten founders of SWAN, about her evolution from soldier to activist. She explained that the established veteran groups which she had been hooking up with were not giving sufficient attention to the concerns that were endemic to female vets. Hogg conveyed to me, “I was repeatedly told that MST was a woman’s issue.”

The delineated goal of SWAN is to “fill the giant national void in leadership, advocacy, and policy design for women veterans and sevice members, as well as women considering military service.”

They have laid out an ambitious agenda, targeting six core points.

• Comprehensive VA Health Care of Women Vets – This includes an elevated awareness in
all VA facilities, and access to female practioners.
• Military Sexual Trauma – Counseling, pro-bono legal services and advocacy.
• Support for LGBT women in the military – Gay women are discharged by the Department
of Defense at twice the number as for male counterparts.
• Homeless women vets – The homeless population stats currently show that one of three
homeless people nationwide are veterans. Women and their children comprise a growing
part of this demographic.
• Education and Counseling – With recruiters under pressure to fill quotas, they are reaching
out to young women. SWAN members are involved in presenting a voice at high school and
colleges relating information about their personal service.

The Pentagon confirmed that one in three women serving her country has been the victim of a sexual assault. There were 3,000 sexual assaults “reported” in 2008 (as opposed to those that went unreported for fear of ostracism or repercussion). It is clear that the problems of our service women need to be heard and addressed.

Voices about the inequities are starting to enter into the mainstream conversation. Col. (Ret.) Ann Wright has lectured tirelessly about the injustices endured by women in the military. Most recently Helen Benedict wrote The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq.

Hopefully, in between the barbecues and the parades, our citizens will reflect on both the physical and emotional challenges that our service women have – and continue – to face.

As military family members, we were supportive, proud to serve, and prepared to sacrifice for our country and our values. We were not however, prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for artifice. We are Gold Star family members, a mother, a sister-in-law, and an adult child of service members who lost their lives in honorable service of our nation. We feel strongly about the reprehensible way in which the war in Iraq was conceived. The moment that Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Wolfowitz sat down to plan how to sell the invasion to the public under false pretenses, we lost. We all lost. The damage done to us and to our reputation as a nation has still not been fixed.

How then, could Senator McCain begin to fix what he doesn’t even seem to acknowledge has happened? We remember all too well that the war did not begin with the surge. Senator McCain’s rhetoric demonstrates a complete denial about all of the “loss” that occurred before that — the loss to our nation’s integrity and honor. “Still further, what are we as a country losing when we continue to lay to eternal rest the funny kid on the baseball team and the girl who always knew how to get her little siblings to finish their chores? These aren’t Rambos we’re sending to do our dirty work, they are our military,” said Gold Star mother Rosemary Palmer. “We will forever wonder what each might have contributed to our world.”

We appreciated Senator McCain when he spoke up about Bush policies that were damaging.  Yet, he still does not seem to have acknowledged (even to himself) the ongoing extent of that damage or the resulting loss of public trust — which is the lifeblood of our entire system. The Iraqi budget is running a surplus while ours is in a downward spiral. When tens of thousands of Iraqis peacefully protest in the streets against long-term U.S. presence, it is time to change course. It is time to refocus and redouble our efforts on Afghanistan, not stubbornly stay in Iraq while being asked to leave. Gold Star sister-in-law, Janine Gastineau said, “The war in Afghanistan has long been overshadowed by the distraction that is the war in Iraq. Every new disaster there rubs more salt in the wounds of our grief.”

When combined with McCain’s insulting record on veterans’ issues and his tendency to be out of touch with the plight of average working Americans, it is not surprising that he is also far out of touch with the long-term loss of credibility that Iraq has caused us around the world. Only with a truly myopic definition of victory is it possible to keep talking about winning.

As the daughter of a pilot who has been missing for 37 years, I can tell you that the cost of war is decades, generational in scope. To say that we will stay until we have won, in a war that has no clear lines, an ever-shifting definition of the word win is offensive, damaging, unethical, and wrong. It is playing with words to fuel a political campaign. What must we have won to say that we have won, and what more will we have to lose?

By stark comparison to Senator McCain, Senator Obama will take the long view. He will look before he leaps. He will not sacrifice American lives lightly or use force to prove a point. He will restore an honor to the American Presidency that is based on mutual trust. He will respect our service members, their families, and the rest of the world. He will engender respect from around the globe and from the troops that will call him Commander in Chief.

And finally, there is the question of patriotism. When the political chips are down or policies are failing, those who raise questions or who point out failures are accused of being unpatriotic. We are not unpatriotic people. As one widow said to me, “I was a proud military wife for ten years. I resent anyone who questions my patriotism, or anyone else’s, simply because we question a flawed doctrine that endangers precious lives. I would never back down from defense of my country in the presence of a genuine threat. However, I cannot condone the duplicitous politics of McCain and Palin. As a survivor, I am a witness to the pain that plagues the families left behind.”

We are Gold Star Family Members, true patriots. We are standing up for all that is great about this nation that we love. We are standing with a leader who has inspired the nation and the world, a patriot who will command with authority and lead with intelligence and foresight. We will proudly cast our votes for Barack Obama on Tuesday, November 4th.

Janine Gastineau’s brother-in-law and her husband’s only sibling, Helge Philipp Boes, lost his life in Afghanistan in early 2003 during his second tour of duty as an Intelligence officer with the CIA’s Counterterrorism Center

Rosemary Palmer of Bay Village, Ohio, is the mother of Lance Corporal Edward “Augie” Schroeder II, who was killed in action near Haditha, Iraq, on August 3, 2005

Lorin Walker, Vice President of CLW-VETPAC, is the daughter of Capt. Bruce C. Walker, whose OV-10A Bronco was shot down in Quang Bihn Province, Vietnam, on April 7, 1972. He has been Missing in Action since 11 days later (two days before Ms. Walker’s 1st birthday), when a rescue attempt was aborted as Capt. Walker was surrounded by the North Vietnamese Army.

The event was organized to assemble care packages for the troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. Michelle Obama, accompanied by her mother and two daughters, was present.

Laura Dempsey, Co-Founder and Co-Chair of Blue Star Families for Obama, explained that her organization was comprised of military families that had started a grass-roots community. Their slogan is “Pro-Military, Pro-Obama.” Dempsey’s husband is an Army major, and she spoke about why military families needed to look closely at Obama, to understand why he was a “better fit.”

Obama voted for the GI Bill signed into law on June 30, 2008; McCain did not. (Obama was one of the 57 co-sponsors, along with Biden and a host of other Democratic colleagues.) Obama voted to stop cuts in Tricare reimbursement, which is the military health care insurance system tied in with Medicare.

Dempsey said about meeting Michelle, “She’s the real deal. She’s going to use her position to advocate [for us].” The Obamas have pledged to create a “military families advisory board.” Dempsey added, “We honor McCain and his service, but we feel that Obama is paying attention.”

Lorin Walker, Alternate Delegate from Washington state who is on the Veterans policy team for Obama, had stronger words to characterize McCain’s voting record on the needs of those in the country’s armed forces. “His service to those who serve has been deplorable. His voting record stands at 20% pro-veteran.” Checking the Disabled American Veterans website, I was able to look up the voting history of elected officials to see how they fared on support of veterans’ issues. Broken down into viscerally effective charts and data documenting status, name of legislation, and date of vote, the tabulations are registered as “with us, against us, not scored.” The individual pages of Obama and McCain bore out Walker’s assertions.

Obama’s green vertical of “with us” loomed large. Perhaps the graph reflects the fact that Obama chose to serve on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee (McCain has never held a seat on the committee.). Looking through the voting records of numerous Senators and Congresspeople, I wondered how the Republicans have managed to sell themselves as the defenders of all things military (unless it is a reference to funding armaments budgets and not human resources). Questioning Walker on why she thought McCain – with such an abysmal voting record on veterans’ concerns – could present himself as the poster boy for the military, she acknowledged that it was very difficult to fight against the “Republican machine.” It is ironic that McCain’s lack of support for veterans, is in reality, at such odds with his projected “brand.”

There is a groundswell of veterans’ groups working to get out other messages. VoteVets and VetPAC (Veterans Alliance for Security and Democracy) are two of the high profile ones. The VetPAC website had a link to an article that originally appeared in Army Times, under the banner “Report: 8,763 Vets Died Waiting for Benefits.” When I asked Walker, who is also Vice-President of CLW-VETPAC, what had caused her to become so involved in veterans’ affairs, the conversation turned personal. She told me that her father, who had been serving in Viet Nam, went MIA in 1972. She appreciates that John McCain’s service was heroic, but feels that using his POW status as a political ploy is inappropriate. On McCain’s reversal on torture she said, “If you say it’s okay to water-board, you have broken faith with your own soldiers. When you torture, it gives them [the enemy] full license.”

Robert Franklin Frisby Jr., a thirty-year veteran who served in the Navy Dental Corp, also shared his thoughts on John McCain. He stated, “I respect what he went through, but perhaps that has jaundiced his opinion. I feel he’s pandering to the real conservative base. He’s not in touch with the needs of the folks fighting – reservists, guardsmen – and those who joined for education.” He paused and then continued, “People put their lives on the line and expect to have opportunities when they come back. These things need to be addressed.”

Frisby’s wife, Yvonne Marzett-Frisby, is a twenty-year veteran. “I was the first black female by direct commission to the Navy Dental Corp,” she told me proudly. Direct commission means that “your education isn’t paid for, you are recruited.” She said, “I was sworn in 1977, in Baltimore, in front of my high school student body with a Navy band playing. I had a wonderful career, but it’s never good to be first.” The concern she voiced was for spouses in the military who are doing simultaneous duty, and don’t always get coverage for their children.

A good number of the speakers on Wednesday night’s convention agenda included those addressing the subject of Veterans’ affairs. CSM Michele Jones (ret.), the first female Command Sergeant Major of the U.S. Army, told the delegates, “Senator Obama understands the veterans. He will fully fund the VA and have zero tolerance for homeless vets.” Rep. Patrick Murphy (Pennsylvania) talked about the track record of President Bush, drawing the picture of a Commander-in-Chief who was available for “photo-ops” but “AWOL” on follow-ups.

Tammy Duckworth, an Asian-American helicopter pilot who served in the Iraq war and is currently the Director of the Illinois Veterans’ Affairs Department, was on stage advising the audience that Obama would put “a 21st Century Veterans Administration into place. Earlier on MSNBC, she told Chuck Todd that four years ago she was watching the convention from Iraq. Even as Todd kept pressing her with questions about the surge, Duckworth stayed on point with her narrative that, “We need to make sure the government steps up and does their job.” The Illinois National Guard Major, who was awarded a Purple Heart, continued her conversation about how Obama has been working on vets’ issues, and said, “I don’t know of anybody more patriotic than Barack and Michelle Obama.” Duckworth has gone on the record refuting Republican tactics that convey, “either you agree with us on national security or you are not patriotic.”

Paul Rieckhoff, Executive Director and Founder of IAVA, suggested that Duckworth was the “new face of veterans.” Rieckhoff, an Iraq vet who founded IAVA in 2004, has built an organization of over 95,000 veteran members, with supporters in every state. He told me that having Michelle Obama at the event (where 300 packages were put together) was “huge,” and that her round tables reaching out to military families “are of immense value.”

IAVA is a non-partisan organization, and Rieckhoff made it clear that he was “a political independent.” He was unequivocal in his pronouncement that “torture is not an American value, that it hurts our soldiers, and that it is a moral challenge for our country.” Rieckhoff was resolute in his position that “taking care of the troops shouldn’t be partisan.” His objective, he said, “is to keep them all in check.”

After the Labor Day holiday, as people start to focus on the election, they should pay sharp attention to the differences in what Obama and McCain propose to offer those who have served our country.

Hopefully, this November 11th, our veterans will have cause for celebration.