Today, over a dozen women and two men have sued the Pentagon for standing by, or “turning a blind eye,” as they were raped and assaulted.
Those assaults on servicewomen took place in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as in the U.S. as recently as two months ago, often without any real repercussions to the perpetrator. The lawsuit also names Defense Secretaries Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld for failing to enforce existing protections for women in the military, or further ensure their safety.
Among the chilling stories: Rebecca Havrilla was the only female member of a bomb squad in Afghanistan. After being constantly sexually harassed by her supervisor, she said a fellow sergeant raped her while another sergeant took photographs. The photos ended up on a website for “hot military girls.”
Also horrifying is the story of Sarah Albertson, who was raped by a man with a higher rank who climbed into bed with her. The army refused to reassign him while the case was pending, Albertson gained weight from depression, and then the army forced her to undergo a weight-loss program — overseen by her rapist. “He was in charge of judging my body,” she told Today.
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