I wasn’t important.

“We have an epidemic here,” [Rep. Jane Harman] said. “Women serving in the U.S. military today are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq.”

That was 2008, yet little has changed.

Kori Cioca, 25, of Wilmington, Ohio, tells about how she was raped while serving in the U.S. Coast Guard.

Long story short, I was raped.

When I told my command they waited. They didn’t do anything to help me. It’s like they didn’t care. It wasn’t important. I wasn’t important.

The coast guard’s a lifesaving service yet they didn’t save mine.

Military doctors say that 40% of women at veterans’ hospitals report being sexually assaulted during their service.

[Rep. John] Tierney said, “what’s at stake here goes to the very core of the values of the military and the nation itself.

“When our sons and daughters put their lives on the line to defend the rest of us, the last thing they should fear is being attacked by one of our own.”

Will we kick the can down the road on this, as victims of sexual assault in our own military suffer in silence? Will we continue to hold hearings and listen to the military say it takes these issues seriously, while the evidence in these cases proves the opposite to be true. We must listen to these women’s stories. We must believe and trust them. And we must demand justice.

Please check out the Service Women’s Action Network (SWAN) for more information and ways to get involved.

 

Memorial Day

It seems to me that it must be an extraordinarily difficult time to be a member of the U.S. military. Amid overwhelming opposition to the war in Iraq (including numerous Veterans groups against the war) and divisive politicization of foreign policy issues, our leaders continuously fail to fulfill their promises to our veterans.

Women in uniform are demeaned, sexually harassed and assaulted at an alarming rate. Unfortunately, the Department of Veterans Affairs is unprepared to deal with the unique needs of female veterans (read this article by Helen Benedict about “Women Warriors” and see S.W.A.N. for a long list of resources).

There is also a debate going on now over whether or not increased educational benefits for veterans will encourage them to leave the military at a time when recruiting and retention numbers are dangerously low. The 21st Century G.I. Bill is undeniably better for the troops, and would be a true incentive that would boost recruitment, not hurt it.

Despite John McCain’s reputation as a war hero, he consistently votes against veterans’ benefits. As Aaron Glantz puts it, he “adores the war and ignores the warriors.” There is clearly no simple solution to the war in Iraq, but an easy first step would be to fund resources for the veterans at even a fraction of what we spend on the war.

*Check out “Final Salute” for photos by photographer Todd Heisler and words by reporter Jim Sheeler as they tell the stories of the fallen.