Sexual violence among students at U.S. military academies and the punishment of those responsible is a growing concern. The article “House reacts to ‘a sexual assault crisis’ at the Coast Guard Academy” notes that incidents of violence doubled from 2013 to 2018 while reporting rates fell (Radelat, 2019, para. 7). Overall, surveys show that there is both a high level of gender discrimination and a high incidence of sexual violence and harassment in the U.S. military academies. Additionally, there is a problem of punishment of participants in such acts since “the nation’s service academies use military judicial procedures” (Radelat, 2019, para. 18). Senior military command is often poorly informed about what penalties should be applied and how to assess such violations. Additionally, cadets are often wary of reporting violence due to possible disapproval from higher officials. Thus, the direct command cannot participate in the objective investigation of such episodes.
An amendment was proposed by Senator Speier that requires an independent prosecutor to participate in the proceedings. Most importantly, such a person must have considerable experience in dealing with acts of sexual harassment and violence. However, this proposal met with criticism, as it can reduce the role of direct command in such situations. Speier’s initiative is the first step, as Senator Kirsten Gillibrand proposed to remove the active military command from investigating cases of sexual assault altogether and assign them to independent prosecutors. Thus, the article emphasizes that in the U.S. military academies, the number of reports of sexual violence and harassment is extremely low precisely because there is no adequate proceeding system.
Position
In my opinion, the Coast Guard or the other branches of the armed forces use sufficiently strict penalties in cases of sexual assault or harassment. According to the report, in 2019, there were 8 decisions on sexual assault episodes and 37 on sexual harassment (U.S. Coast Guard, 2020, 11-14). Those found guilty of sexual harassment received disciplinary reprimands and were required to attend counseling and special training. At the same time, 3 out of 8 accused of sexual assault were acquitted (U.S. Coast Guard, 2020, 11). Those found guilty received a reduction to various grades, confinement for a period from 120 days to 4 years, and a bad-conduct discharge (U.S. Coast Guard, 2020, 11). The presented data indicate that the command applies strict and adequate punishments from the episode of sexual violence.
While disciplinary action against those accused of sexual harassment and assault is sufficient, reporting can be a problem. The report indicated that the number of reports in 2019 dropped significantly compared to 2018 (U.S. Coast Guard, 2020, 5). This situation can be an indicator that the prevention and response program that the army is implementing is effective. On the other hand, as highlighted in the article, officers may be afraid to report these episodes to the high command. Thus, the problem may lie not so much in insufficient punishment but more in the inattentive attitude of the command to the situation as a whole.
Conclusion
The problem of sexual harassment is acute in the modern world, and in the military structures, this topic is also delicate. Despite the good intentions of the Senators to create a more equal and fair process for dealing with such cases, the number of reports can only diminish. Participants in episodes of sexual violence may experience pressure from the command and a reluctance to publically release the details of the case. The punishment of those responsible for these episodes should be entrusted exclusively to the military court since it is an internal process. Senator Speier’s proposal seems useful and promising, while Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is claiming excessive and potentially harmful amendments. Thus, it is necessary to conduct internal work with high command regarding cases of sexual violence.
References
Radelat, A. (2019). House reacts to ‘a sexual assault crisis’ at Coast Guard Academy. The CT Mirror. Web.
U.S. Coast Guard. (2020). Sexual assault in the U.S. Coast Guard (FY 2019): Report to Congress [PDF-file]. U.S. Coast Guard. Web.