Hood Today

When I first read Mr. Ken Rupert's response letter to my last column, on women in the military, I was very surprised. I was glad to see that someone read my column who has personal experience in the military. However, I was frankly shocked that Mr. Rupert was obviously accusing me of having no basis for my opinions, asking "How many soldiers did Ms. Cogdill talk to?" and "How does she know what 'many male soldiers' think?" Here, I take my chance to defend my points and my character.

I find it interesting that Mr. Rupert has attacked me for leaps of logic that he relied on more heavily than I did in my column. For instance, he provides statistics for how many marriages and births take place in the U.S., yet when he sarcastically says I must have "unprecedented knowledge about every facet of the military," it is clear that he must not have checked to see if there were statistics pertaining to the issues that I was discussed.

I understand that sometimes speaking in generalities can be confusing. Mr. Rupert claims that using generalities - or simply saying "many" - "ensnares those of us who do not hold that opinion." Actually, that is the opposite of what saying "many" means, since saying many people believe something obviously excludes those who do not believe it. But when I say "many" people believe something or experienced something, I am using the word "many" to mean, a large number of people (from the Webster's definition). "Many" is usually what people say when they mean, as I did, more than a few, but not all. Clearly I understand that not all male soldiers rape women. I know not all people in the U.S. think women shouldn't be in the military. When I said "many," I meant, enough that there is a clear problem! The statistics and anecdotes from women who have served in the military show that there truly is an issue at hand.

I was prompted to write this column when several things came together in my mind and my personal life concerning women in the military. I had spoken with my 18-year old cousin over Thanksgiving break, who told me she had joined the Marines, had been training with them for a while, and was leaving for boot camp at Parris Island in January. This brought to my mind many news stories I had read recently about women in the military, especially the stories about rape and sexual assault. I warned my younger cousin about these risks, and she assured me that she understood that danger and was prepared for it. I also asked her how the males with whom she trained - who were already Marines, and had been deployed before - treated her, as a young girl. She told me that they mostly viewed women who joined the Marines as "sluts who just want to sleep with a bunch of military guys."

I asked a friend of mine who served in the Army, including tours in both Iraq and Afghanistan, about her experience as a woman in the military. She told me that no matter how much experiences she had, there were men who refused to respect her, and treated her with open hostility. Her abilities were constantly in question, although men - even those who did not perform as well as she - were not subjected to this.

Another way I know that a lot of people are against women serving in the military is from my upbringing. I grew up in Tennessee and Georgia, surrounded by very traditionally-minded people. In high school, I asked my father (a U.S. Navy veteran) what he would think if I decided to go into the military, having spoken with recruiters from all branches of the military at school. He told me flatly that the military was 'no place for a woman.' I asked if he meant me specifically, and he said no, women should not be in the military at all - they are not strong enough and they will distract the men from their jobs. This sentiment was echoed among many people in my life, including family members and friends (some veterans, others not.)

That is my personal experience. No, I haven't spoken to every female in the military who has had a difficult time. But I did not base my opinion, that women face disrespect and danger in the military, only on my personal experience speaking to veterans.

As I mentioned, I have also read several news stories that tell of a rape epidemic that plagues women in the U.S. military. I have read several miscellaneous stories about particular people, but I also read a few from large news sources that quoted polls of the military.

In 2003, a survey (reported by NPR) found that 30 percent of female veterans said they were raped while they were in the military. This data suggests that nearly a third of all female veterans, experienced this life-changing trauma in 2003 (on top of the trauma of war!) A 2004 study found that 71 percent of female veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress (PTSD) disorder said they were sexually assaulted or raped while serving. As Helen Benedict suggests in The Nation, perhaps this explains why women in the military have double the rates of PTSD and depression as those of male soldiers. The fact that female veterans struggle with PTSD and depression, including their experiences with sexism and discrimination, was also reported by the New York Times last October. Another story, from CNN last July, reported that 1 in 4 women in veterans' hospitals said they had been sexually assaulted while in the military. This means that women serving in the U.S. military are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed in action.

And although Mr. Rupert seems to doubt it, these polls show that 90 percent of rapes go unreported. Of those that are reported, 49 percent are dismissed by the courts. 62 percent of the perpetrators who are convicted receive minimal punishments, such as letters of reprimand or temporary suspension. Only 10.9 percent result in court martials. Also, many women have reported that they actually get punished when they report these violent crimes. For example, when Cassandra Hernandez reported her gang rape to Air Force officials, she was charged with indecent behavior. When Sgt. Marti Ribeiro reported being raped on guard duty, the Air Force threatened to court martial her because she did not have her weapon with her at the time.

Mr. Rupert claims that he saw nothing to suggest this problem during his years in the Army and the National Guard. I am honestly glad to hear that Mr. Rupert has respect for female soldiers. However, just as Mr. Rupert says I have no way of knowing the experience of every soldier in the military, or the thoughts of every person in the U.S., neither does he. He is one man, who served for a few years. He knows only his own experience and those of the people with whom he served.

I found it interesting that Mr. Rupert was adamant that I cannot know the views of "every male soldier" but he thinks he, also being one person, is capable of this. It is illogical to say that just because you never saw something happen, it doesn't happen at all. So, yes, I will base my assertions on the answers that female veterans gave to the polls and studies they participated in.

While not everyone believes "women aren't strong enough for the military" or "women need to stay home and take care of their families," the harassment and difficulty that is reported by an overwhelming number of women in the military shows that many people do have a hostile mindset. I also noticed that Mr. Rupert did not comment on the fact that women are still not allowed to fight in ground combat positions. The official reasoning behind this ban is that "American society believes that femininity is incompatible with combat." A 2005 Gallup Poll found that 72 percent of the American public favors women serving in Iraq; however, only 44 percent agreed that women should "serve as the ground troops, who are doing most of the fighting." This shows me that the Pentagon is at least partially right - that the majority of the American public, although they are ok with women being in the military, do not believe women should be 'on the front lines.' What better way to show that the Army, and the other 56 percent of the American public, think women should only be in the military as long as they're not doing the 'real men's jobs'?

The major mistake that Mr. Rupert has made is thinking that I am trying to put down male soldiers by spewing lies about the oppression that women in the military face. I am not speaking about "the male soldier" - Mr. Rupert is the one who has used that generality. The only male soldiers I personally take issue with are the ones who rape their fellow soldiers or who disrespect and insult them. I respect and support all soldiers who do their jobs well, as I said in my column.

Mr. Rupert ends his letter by saying "next time Ms. Cogdill has an axe to grind against men, leave the military man out of it." I will grind my ax anywhere I see fit - anywhere I see oppression. The tone of this entire ending paragraph seemed to be "male soldiers protect your country, so you should keep your mouth shut about them." Well, I just can't do that. I can't stay silent about an issue that is ruining the lives of so many people.

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