The Invisible War--a film, a movement, a call to action

There is a film making the rounds at independent film festivals and it brings up a sensitive and deeply buried issue--sexual abuse within the U.S. Military Ranks. This film, while in itself is a triumph, has also been credited with giving fuel to a civil suit brought against the Pentagon.

The Invisible War tells the stories of female military personnel who were sexually assaulted, raped, or harassed by other military personnel. The film was screened on Capital Hill the week of February 6th, with a standing room only audience including 2 Senators and 5 Congresspersons and their staff. Senator Barbara Boxer and Congresswoman Jackie Speier introduced the film, with Senator Boxer assuring that "no one would leave the room unchanged." The filmmakers felt that the screening was a great success and hope to have more showings so that policymakers can see the real people that policies (or lack thereof) affect.




Military life has many hardships. The day-to-day work of a Soldier, Sailor, Marine, or Coast Guard can be grueling. Many face deployment, sometimes with short notice, and extended time away from friends and family. When someone has been sexually assaulted or raped, it is important for them to know that they are believed and supported. When someone is isolated from all connections to their life before military enlistment through geographic distance, limited access to communication, or fear of repercussions, they do not receive the support that a victim needs. Many of the victims interviewed talk about the fact that their perpetrators were the ones supposed to protect them. A few of the articles use the term "fellow soldiers," which I believe is inaccurate, given that many of them were assaulted by people ranking above them, and even their direct superior officer.


A few of Transitions' staff members, myself included, had the opportunity to hear one of the experts in the film firsthand. Russell Strand, Chief, Family Advocacy Law Enforcement Training Division, was a speaker for a training PCAR hosted approximately 2 years ago. He was creative in his approach to training law enforcement agents and spoke from experience about multiple sexual assault cases he was involved in. Strand has established, developed, produced and conducted the US Army Sexual Assault Investigations, Domestic Violence Intervention Training, Sexual Assault Investigations and Child Abuse Prevention and Investigation Techniques courses, and supervised the development of the Critical Incident Peer Support course. Mr. Strand is someone who understands victim behavior and what is needed to make the survivor feel believed and supported. He also has compassion and an attitude that is greatly needed in law enforcement.


This is not the first time military sexual abuse has been covered, but it is currently backed by powerful policymakers in Congress and it appears that they are taking it seriously. I hope that a different approach is taken by the military to combat the attitude of complacency towards sexual assault. The military has been and is currently going through major changes, including the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. This is the precise moment when systemic change can be made.

This film and movement need to be noticed. The victims of rape within the military ranks need to know that there are people who do believe them, and who will fight for a better system, more support, and tougher punishment than a mark on a disciplinary record.