Posted on 03/07/2005 9:26:22 AM PST by LouAvul
Gina W. went to Iraq, and came back with a different kind of war story. Her battlefields were in the barracks and the mess hall. The weapons were innuendoes and threats. And the enemy? Her own boss.
"When you go there, you have to be prepared for war," she says. "And then you have to be worried about being raped by your own people."
The former Army specialist is one of dozens of military women interviewed by The Bee who say they faced some kind of sexual harassment while in the combat theater in Afghanistan or Iraq.
Though publicity about sexual misconduct in the war zone has focused on rape, female soldiers said unwelcome advances, demeaning comments - and a feeling that being alone around male comrades in arms meant being unsafe - were far greater concerns.
"I think every female (soldier in Iraq) has been sexually harassed," said Sgt. Yolanda Medina of Long Beach, who is doing her second tour there with the California National Guard's 2668th Transportation Company.
The exact number of U.S. military women who have been assaulted or harassed is probably somewhere between Medina's "every female" and the number reported by the Department of Defense.
Defense Department numbers show that from August 2002 through October 2004, 118 cases of sexual assault on military personnel were reported in Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan. But the Miles Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps victims of military domestic violence and sexual assault, reports that it was contacted by 258 military assault victims in the combat theater during that same time span. That number rose to 307 through mid-February, according to the foundation.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
" Hey, I know what you're doing from the other thread, course, I'm doing the same thing."
I have no idea of what your talking about and will surely deny everything anyway. So, and how is your day going?
That was when women had position. The libs and their lunar lunacy have robbed women of their status by denegrating the worth, significance and the stature of men.
Reason enough to have an all male army or have female units highly separated from their male counterparts. Given the circumstances what is happening should be no surprise.
I was going to post something like this but was afraid of being flamed! Thanks! :)
Superbly stated. I agree 100% with every word.
DUH!
"(sarasm) Yes, only draft young men who don't want to be there should be in a combat zone."
Wait a minute! We don't have a "draft", it's an all volunteer outfit or have you heard? They sign on willingly and they also realize that by joining any of the services, they MAY end up in the middle of a combat zone, well DUH. Get off that s**t! I have a son over there right now (Baqubah), watch your mouths pogues--REMFs...
And get the women out of the combat zones.
"...women do not belong anywhere near a combat zone, period."
I agree 100% AND I'm a woman!
You are welcome, and fear not Grannyx4, it doesn't hurt a bit to tell it like it is.
Thanks. I think there are a lot of us out there, both men and women, that can agree on this, and for many different reasons. Good reasons can have a practical, traditional, historical, and religous basis. Our military should be used to protect our shores and national security by destroying our enemies, and the focus of all training and tactical deployments ought to be geared towards that. There is no place in that effort for trying to make our military mirror civilian society.
I'm sure there are many women like you Polyxene, that agree with keeping women out of combat zones (there are few rear areas now).
Sometimes, 2 cents can be worth much more than just 2 cents. Oohrah.
I wonder too, especially when a woman leaves her children behind.
Thanks and I love your tag line!
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