The purpose of the Coast Guard is national security, to ensure the safety of all people in the United States, but the ironic fact is that women in their own facilities are not safe.
Four women have bravely come front and testified about the atrocities they faced during their time at the US Coast Guard Academy. These women were sexually assaulted and harassed at the academy. Additionally, the victims were silenced by the higher officials in the academy and the offenders have faced little to no consequences for their actions.
One of the women graduated in 1981 and she was assaulted in her own dorm room. She never reported the incident as she knew that reporting it would do her no good. She stayed quiet and continued to face the harassment until she became a commander of the Coast Guard. But, sadly even after getting this position her harassment continued.
Another woman who was in the class of 2008, shared that she would be constantly groped in public, and other men would see her being assaulted and laugh. She highlights that during swim class she would be groped underwater and when she went to her professor in tears for help, she was not taken seriously. This caused her to discontinue her education at the Coast Guard Academy and restart at a different college. Her offender is now in the position of lieutenant commander, a position that she had aspired for. While he is thriving, all she is left with is the trauma that he caused.
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| Currently a Cadet in the Academy |
Another woman who graduated in 2011 voiced that she was raped and assaulted by two different classmates at the university but never reported it because she had seen many women being dismissed by higher officials when they reported their experiences. She shared that the trauma she faced from being tortured physically but also mentally from not being able to report made her attempt suicide.
Finally, the fourth woman is still currently a cadet at the academy and was sexually assaulted in the first few weeks of her freshman year. She reported the incident but this caused her to be further harassed by her perpetrator's friends. While he was removed from the academy eventually, he was removed through an honorable discharge. This meant that he left with a clean slate and no one would know that he was an offender.
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| The Four Survivors |
A disturbing aspect of all these stories is the range in the timeline. The earliest is from 1981 but the most recent one is from a student who is still at the academy. This strongly highlights the fact that no matter how much we argue that men and women now have equal opportunity, in reality, that is a superficial view. The Coast Guard Academy is just one example. Millions of women face unsafe conditions in their place of work and education even today making them places of unequal opportunity.
The women at the Coast Guard Academy were training to meet the requirements to achieve their career aspirations. But, they were faced with harassment and assault in the process of doing so.
Recently in class, we learned about the requirements needed to become a senator or a representative. Additionally, we discussed how women are a minority in the makeup of the Congress. It can be argued that women not only need to meet the requirements to be eligible for the position but will most likely also be faced with other societal atrocities in the process, potentially providing a reason for why they are a minority.
Source:
- Ashley Roselynn Vincent
17 comments:
I agree that it is extremely ironic how the Coast Guard Academy which aims to train guards to provide security makes their own students feel unsafe. Stories such as the ones from these four women are unfortunately pretty common. Additionally, I think it is disheartening to see them discouraged from sharing their stories because they don't think that anyone will listen. According to a 1986 Supreme Court decision, sexual harassment needs to be deemed "severe or pervasive" in order to qualify as harassment, which is why many sexual harassment cases get dismissed. Only 3% to 6% ever make it to trial. From what I've seen, the main federal law that protects against harassment is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Many famous cases such as the Anita Hill/Clarence Thomas and Paula Jones/Clinton cases used Title VII as a basis for their case, but the cases never came to a concrete conclusion because of lack of evidence. One case that did win was EEOC v. Mitsubishi Motor Manufacturing of America, but mainly because the harassment was way too severe to be ignored. Workplaces require sexual harassment training, but according to Harvard Business review, these training videos actually make harassers more likely to blame the victim, and don't actually reduce harassment in the workplace. I think this blog post showcases a trend that has been happening for a while, and underscores the need for more protection against sexual harassment at school and in workplaces. It is obviously taking a toll on the lives and well beings of innocent people, as victims feel forced to quit school/their jobs in order to preserve their mental and physical health.
https://hbr.org/2020/05/why-sexual-harassment-programs-backfire
https://www.npr.org/2017/11/28/565743374/sexual-harassment-cases-often-rejected-by-courts
https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/five-biggest-sexual-harassment-cases
https://clearinghouse.net/case/9787/#:~:text=Specifically%2C%20the%20complaint%20alleged%20that,unwelcome%20verbal%20and%20physical%20sexual
Wow, this is really saddening. I like how you connected this to the reasoning behind why fewer women are in the Senate. It really breaks my heart to see that these women were silenced and pretty much had no one to turn to about their experiences. In response to Mia's point, it is really ironic how the academy trains its attendants to provide security yet cannot even protect its guards. It's really unfortunate that an assault needs to be deemed "severe" or "pervasive" to actually be considered assault. Personally, I think an assault shouldn't have to be severe for someone to be held accountable for their actions. It makes me happy that these women were finally able to speak their truth after all these years but it is truly astonishing to see that, even after continued assaults, there hasn't been anything done. I also agree that this is a perfect example of why women don't involve themsevles in government because they don't get the respect they deserve and aren't taken seriously. These women joined the academy for a reason, yet they're treated as if they're there to "reward" the men of the academy. This isn't right in the slightest. I hope the academy faces severe consequences as a result of their efforts to silence their victims.
After reading up on the stories of these women I find it absolutely gut wrenching that, to echo earlier points made, an institution founded on the basis of protecting the citizens of the United States would deny these women the right to feel safe at their school. This just goes to show how important it is for those who have been sexually assaulted in the past to be taken seriously. The severity of the assault should not be the deciding force between whether or not a school decides to punish the assaulter or not–sexual assault is sexual assault. After going through such a traumatic event in their life these women should not be forced to remain silent for fear of ‘ruining their assaulter’s reputation’ or worse being completely ignored and it is honestly infuriating that they had to wait so long to share their stories. I am however glad that not only the public but the government are recognizing that what may have been ‘tolerated’ (for lack of a better word) in the past, is beyond unacceptable and will no longer be tolerated. And on the subject of this topic, I did want to pose the following question which is, Do you think as members of Gen Z and the younger generations begin to enter the world of politics and go off to university, that more change will be brought about regarding issues of sexual assault?
Honestly, it infuriates me that the one time assault is actually taken seriously, the perpetrator receives an "honorable discharge." There is nothing honorable about assaulting one of your peers, and while this point may seem elementary, the fact that this still occurs is proof that America really doesn't protect women. In these professions, there is not only the challenge of breaking the glass ceiling, but there is the constant threat of being targeted purely for being a woman in a "traditionally male" job. I am very well aware that the main argument surrounding sexual assault is that it isn't all men, but we have to understand that it is, without fail, always men. All the men at the US Coast Guard Academy may not be rapists, but majority of them watched, laughed at and completely ignored the plight of these women. Every woman's greatest fear is being put in a position like this and being unable to get justice, and these women have lived that nightmare. The fact that this still happens, and that there are no repercussions for the assaulters, is proof of how much more society protects men than women. For men, if they assault a woman, nobody gives any consequences because they don't want to "ruin the man's life for a tiny mistake." But if women are raped, nobody cares for how that ruins their lives. Nobody cares about the years of healing that will have to be undertaken to recover from being assaulted. It's a harrowing experience, as anyone whose experienced it can say, and yet nobody bats an eye when they see a woman being harassed on the street or roofied in a bar. 1 out of every 6 American women are subject to sexual assault at some point in their lives, and this doesn't even account for the amount that are sexually harassed. America's policy on sexual violence remains both abysmal and non-adhered to, and the time for amendments to this is long overdue. There needs to be change in the way we approach the topic of sexual violence and how we treat victims, both women and men, and the fact that women are still scared to come forward about their assault proves that America still has ways to go in its approach to sexual harassment and assault.
Sexual harassment has been prevalent in all parts of American society, and it is simply disgusting whenever I hear men online comment such backhanded and ill-meaning words. Oftentimes, whenever sexual harassment claims reach major news headlines and garner lots of media attention, there are always people who try to downplay or even dismiss these women's stories. A common saying among these bigots is, "but if the roles were reversed...," implying that if a man were to be sexually harassed, then they would not get the justice they deserve. This type of mindset is more than stupid, it's harmful. I agree that if anybody were to be sexually harassed or assaulted, then they should immediately receive the justice they deserve. But when people try to compare sexual harassment stories between men and women, our society loses focus on the legitimate issue. The issue at hand is not whether or not women or men have it worse, but a judicial and societal issue that pressures countless people to not come out with their stories. I truly wish that our country as a whole can become more receptive to the stories of others and not feel the need to compare the differences in experience between the genders. The only thing that matters is finally giving these women the justice they deserve.
These testimonies are so shocking: the fact that a culture of sexual harassment was, in one's cadet's case, endorsed by the very people who are entrusted with protecting and serving the American public, is appalling ("Another woman who was in the class of 2008, shared that she would be constantly groped in public, and other men would see her being assaulted and laugh.") And the fact that such injustices were dismissed by higher-ups is even more jarring. Ashley mentioned that the first case originated in 1981, and while I don't necessarily agree with her point that feminism has not advanced since, it still offers valuable insight into gender inequality and sexism within the military (specifically during the training process), which remains a fairly obscure group. The Coast Guard Academy is a prestigious institution and the fact that stories like these still emerge from it is wrong and suggests that there are serious concerns as to the culture of the Academy. Hopefully, there will be disciplinary reform to promote a safe environment for these women.
I am absolutely appalled by this academy. At first glance, this seems like a honorable university that provides their students with unique opportunities in place of a "traditional" 4-year college. On their website, they stated their school's mission, "The focus of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy is to develop officer-ready leaders of character who embody Coast Guard values, who influence and inspire others, and who decide what is right and demonstrate the courage to act accordingly." Moreover, it states that their "officer-ready leaders" would embody their values being: honor, respect, and devotion to duty. After reading this blog post, I find it extremely ironic that one of the academy's values is respect and a part of their mission states that they want their students to "decide what is right." I had no idea that respect and deciding what was right is shown through acts of sexual harassment, sexual assault, and rape. Personally, I don't think that is how I would like to be shown respect. Additionally, it is more than likely that there are way more women who have attended this academy and have had to experience this but haven't spoken out. I find it awful that the majority of these women who have attended the academy are afraid to report their harassment/abuse because a) it could further their harassment/abuse or b) it is pointless because no action would be taken. Not to mention, the one time that one of the women mentioned in this article who got her perpetrator removed from the academy, it was an honorable discharge. How is sexual violence honorable??? Instead of leaving with an education or whatever they desired to gain from the academy, these women are left with deep scars that stem from the years of abuse they had to endure at this academy.
Additionally, the fact that victims of abuse from this academy has spanned from 1981 up until today demonstrates that sexual harassment/abuse is in dire need to be addressed (for both women and men). Mia mentioned that only 3-6% of sexual harassment cases even make it to trial which also shows how far away our country is from being able to addressing sexual violence. I hope that in the future there will be some kind of solution for all victims because it is disgusting how often sexual violence occurs in our world today.
https://uscga.edu/mission/
https://www.forcecom.uscg.mil/Portals/3/Documents/TCCM/Documents/Helmsmannew.pdf?ver=2017-05-23-160144-093#:~:text=Our%20service%20and%20strength%20are,Respect%2C%20and%20Devotion%20to%20Duty.&text=Integrity%20is%20our%20standard.,our%20personal%20and%20organizational%20actions.
The fact that such a seemingly "honorable," academy, for an "honorable," cause (protection), could allow such horrible assaults to continue is not only awful, but frankly embarrassing for the Coast Guard Academy. Any institution, any business, any school and anyone who preaches of virtuous things, yet picks and chooses when to remain moral, should receive no credit. Their reputation is shattered by being so fake. Its horrifying to think that those who led the academy and partook in the academy believed they were noble men, participating in a noble cause, yet truly were assholes with no morals. The code switching that people do in terms of fairness and beliefs reveals how selfish humans are when allowed to be. These men were selfish and hurt women for their pleasure, because the men had a support system allowing them to get away with it. Unfortunately, in circumstances where the women are the minority, it's easy to continue hostility without repercussion. Such injustice should be taken very seriously. Not only are those who committed the crimes responsible, but the professors are responsible for their despicable actions perpetuating such hostility, and setting a precedent that women can be taken advantage of. The women's professors who denied them help should be removed from their positions, and leadership in these sort of communities should set a tone for respect and safety not abuse.
Responding to the question Ariana posed, honestly upon learning that these stories ranged from 1981 to now makes me think not any huge change will be brought simply due to us the younger generation entering politics and these institutions. And, this range in timeline is just with 4 women who came forward from one institution. There undoubtedly are millions of other stories from various other institutions that could have taken place well before 1981. So, in my perspective, I do not think much will change with us the younger generation getting involved because every generation before us has also been a younger generation at some point in time. I think things will start to change when we take active steps like creating safe spaces in institutions where women will be heard when they share their experiences or there strict consequences in place for perpetrators in order to combat this issue.
I completely agree with what many have already commented. It's awful and disgraceful to see women in the military ignored and discredited for coming to the public with problems of sexual assault in the military. As the blog mentioned, many of the people who testified said they feared telling superiors about their experiences fearing they wouldn't believe them or would be yelled at themselves. Because of this, it allows people to easier assault others without fear of punishment. The very institution that was made to protect American citizens can't even protect their own service men and women. As Mia said, the assault needs to seem severe and persuasive to actually have any action done which is why so many cases like these get dismissed. I think whenever there is assault committed there should be automatic punishments with further punishment based on severity. This would discourage assault from people and bring awareness to others about punishments they could face. I wish out country could be a place where citizens and ESPECIALLY service men and women don't fear sharing their experiences to the public.
It's very sad to see how women in the military are treated and how pervasive physically and sexually inappropriate behavior continues to be. Of course, in the past, treatment of both trainees and those who had been serving for a long time had been brutal (and often bigoted, with rampant homophobia and racism within the ranks), but seeing it ongoing and seeing victims of it be silenced repeatedly is a very concerning indicator of the lack of social progress that those who dedicate their lives to serving this country face. I think that it is even more shocking when one concerns that these crimes are essentially going unpunished despite the rigor of military academies like this one; military academies are and always have been extremely strict and both mentally and physically taxing. The fact that military academies, training a new generation of strong and intelligent people who serve our country, show a willingness to push people to their absolute limit mentally and physically and will willingly punish students for relatively minute mistakes, but still overlook and silence victims of sexual assault, shows that they largely just do not care about sexual assault as an issue or the well being of students at their schools, which is incredibly scary as these are the key rising places for protectors of our country.
It is incredibly heartbreaking and disgusting to see how many women in the military and just out in the world are victims of sexual harassment/assault. Even more in the military, where women and men are supposed to be trained to protect and serve, and instead are creating an environment where women need to be constantly in fear. I know that historically this issue was one that was completely overlooked and ignored, but I expected that that would change with time. This clearly isn't the case since a cadet who is currently enrolled was harassed, and her harasser, a monster, was honorably discharged. It is especially saddening to hear that most of the women who endure this abuse are usually too scared to report it, or know that nothing at all will happen. I think that much harsher policies need to be put into place so that attackers are punished accordingly (NOT honorably discharged) so that this issue stops. I think the reason this is such a common event is because it is no secret that when these kinds of incidents are reported, abusers are not punished and the event is most often ignored. That is why it is so pertinent that those rules change. Women who want nothing but to serve our country MORE than deserve to feel safe around their fellow peers while doing so. This entire issue is sickening.
It is deeply troubling and disgraceful to witness the dismissal and undermining of women in the military who come forward publicly with issues of sexual assault within the military. As mentioned in the blog, the testimonies reveal a fear among individuals to report their experiences to superiors, fearing disbelief or potential backlash. This situation creates an environment where perpetrators can assault others with impunity, even within an institution designed to protect American citizens and its own service members.
The troublesome accounts of sexual assault and harassment at the Coast Guard Academy are deeply distressing. The survivors' stories reveal a sharp distance between the mission of the academy and the safety of its own students. The connection drawn between these experiences and the broader social challenges women face in pursuing positions of leadership, such as becoming senators or representatives, is looked down upon. It highlights the additional hurdles women may encounter beyond meeting the official requirements for such roles. The courage displayed by the survivors in speaking out against their traumatic experiences serves as a call to action for a thorough examination and overlook of the systems continuing this culture of abuse.The lack of accountability for perpetrators highlights the extensive issues, echoing broader challenges women face in pursuing careers. Urgent action and extensive changes are needed to ensure a safety and an equal environment for all, deconstruct the barriers moving towards the progress toward true gender equality.
I find this disturbing because it brings up the question of if this is just FOUR women, how many women has this really happened to that continue to stay silent out of fear or societal expectations? The commenters opinion at the end is something that I agree with because it might prove as a reason as to why women might be a minority in congress. This could be because as a woman tries to gain enough power to be voted into congress, they might have had experiences that have made them turn against that decision to want to be a congresswomen or something along the lines of that. As someone who reads the news, I haven’t heard of this case yet which also shows that issues like this seem to be less important because women being served justice for things like this is rare but seemingly unimportant. Other than that, I agree with what everyone else is saying about how it's sad to see that many are disheartened about coming to public with these stories because they will be ignored or laughed at. It’s crazy to me that women can still be a minority despite us making up half the population on Earth.
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