On November 14, EMPOWER, along with several other clubs, hosted a showing of the film “The Invisible War,” which documented rape and sexual abuse in the armed forces.  A week later, a local recruiter for the U.S. Armed Forces was scheduled to talk with EMPOWER.  The recruiter was requested so that the club members could all discuss together their afterthoughts of the movie, and to learn a little bit about his job as a recruiter, and his knowledge regarding the topic at hand.

A day after the movie was shown at school, the recruiter cancelled the much-anticipated meeting.

An email was sent to Ms. DiTomasso from the recruiter expressing his regret for not being able to make an appearance.  In the email, the recruiter included the statement provided to him by the Headquarters Department of the Army:

“The Department and its leaders are resolved and committed to establishing a climate in our armed forces that is free from sexual violence and will continue to work diligently to prevent these crimes; and when they do happen, to care for victims with sensitivity and respect, to thoroughly and independently investigate, and to hold offenders appropriately accountable.”

(The full statement is available at www.thisisyork.org.)

It’s the same every time: the Headquarters Department of the Army talks the talk, they are ‘committed’ to preventing these crimes; they are ready to help out with the aftermath ‘when the crimes do happen,’ but the HQDA doesn’t walk the walk.

In 2010, there were 19,000 cases of sexual assault, according to the Defense Department.  The number was raised to 26,000 in 2012.  Out of those cases, 575 were processed.

“It’s horrible,” junior Amanda Larson said.  “These people put their lives on the line and they deserve to be safe.”

There should never be possibility or an expectation of sexual assault for those enlisting.  The Department of the Army has immense power.  Don’t let America’s dedicated troops face any more danger than they have to on the battlefield.