"The thought of being raped one day and then having to defend the life of the rapist the next is unimaginable. But this is what many women in the military deal with everyday. According to a new study by the Department of Defense, 1 in 3 women in the military are raped....Sgt. Sandra Lee made her first public statement on how she was raped twice while deployed in Iraq. According to Veterans for Peace: “Thirty seven percent of the attempted raped and raped women in the VA study also reported being raped more than once and 14% of them reported being gang raped. This study also discovered that 75% of raped women in the military failed to report it.”
This issue of violence and war and the damage it brings upon women is a horrific topic that gets little attention, especially by those who advocate the occupation and concept of "Just war". I find the topic to be particularly exposing because it gets to the issues of the human heart and the realities of what happens when our most carnal impulses are trained to be used for political ends. We put people into situations that pull upon their most primal natures and then act surprised by the carnage that is unleashed.
Obviously these acts are not perpetrated by all soldiers...but is a stat of 1 in 3...a roll of the dice, you are willing to make with the lives of your daughters?
I've never seen the suicide, PTS or rape statistics in any recruitment material...but I see lots of $$$ used. Does anyone else have a problem with that? Am I somehow unpatriotic because it appears to be dangerously camouflaged? Religion and Violence are both taking a insufferable toll upon the women of this world...in all areas of war. They are the collateral damage...in our march towards power, control, revenge, democracy or whatever other banner is being waived.
Is Sgt. Sandra Lee, a mere pawn of anti-war propaganda...or is she witnessing to the truth...?
It's a dangerous gamble.
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