Military Review English Edition March-April 2015 | Page 28

“West Point Rugby Team Benched Over
Improper E-Mails”
—Stars and Stripes
“Three U.S. Navy Football Players under
Investigation for Alleged Sex Assault, Sources
Say”
—NBC News
“Fort Campbell Sexual Harassment
Manager Arrested”
—USA Today
“Suspect in Fort Hood Prostitution Ring
Identified: Accused Sergeant 1st Class is a
Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and
Prevention (SHARP) Coordinator”
—Army Times
“Head of U.S. Air Force’s Anti-Sexual
Assault Unit Arrested for Sexual Battery”
—Reuters1

Can
Trust Be
Restored?
Keith H. Ferguson

T

he U.S. armed forces have a problem with
sexual harassment and assault. One look at
the headlines seems to tell it all.
The problem of sexual harassment and assault is
not just a perception; it is a reality. The Department of
Defense Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military:
Fiscal Year 2012 reveals that there was a 1.7 percent
increase in unwanted sexual contact reported by
women in our armed forces compared to the 2010
report. Although there has been no similar increase in
26

(Photo by Mike Strasser, West Point PAO)

Wearing blindfold goggles, a U.S. Army West Point team works together to hoist sandbags up and over the wall 16 April 2011during
the 45th annual Sandhurst Military Skills Competition.

the number of assaults on men since 2010, 1.2 percent
of active-duty men indicated that they were subjected
to unwanted sexual attention in the 2012 report. This
indicates that the Department of Defense is faced
with a significant problem.2

Loss of Trust
Each case of unwanted sexual contact results in a
loss of trust by the American people—not only in the