by josie
“The Invisible War,” airing on PBS tonight, exposes sexual assault within the military, such as the case of Kori Cioca, who was denied veteran’s health benefits for injuries sustained during a rape by one of her commanding officers.
We all remember — with disgust — the infamous Tailhook scandal of 1991, in which U.S. Navy and Marine Corps officers sexually assaulted and harassed 83 military women (and seven men) during a convention in Las Vegas. Sad to say, this shocking behavior is still going on. As the Oscar-nominated documentary The Invisible War brings to light, the Department of Defense estimates that there were 19,000 military sexual assaults in 2010, and a female soldier in combat zones is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than be killed by enemy fire.
“We were astonished by the numbers,” said director Kirby Dick, after a screening of the film at the seventh annual West Hollywood Women’s Leadership Conference. “We were even more astounded by the fact that this had been covered up for so long. The military has been very effective at keeping this under wraps.” He and producer Amy Ziering interviewed dozens of survivors whose lives changed forever after they were raped. In addition to their shocking testimonies, “we wanted to focus on this as a systemic problem and the men who could do something about this issue,” added Dick. “There has been some significant movement, but there’s a lot more that needs to be done.”
Indeed, The Invisible War, which premieres on PBS Independent Lens today (check local listings), has had tangible impact. Sen. Barbara Boxer succeeded in passing legislation that bars convicted sexual felons from joining the military, and the Veterans Health Administration now treats victims of sexual trauma for free. But because the decisions on whether to investigate and prosecute these crimes are made by senior-level officers, “There’s a conflict of interest, so the prosecutions don’t go forward and the victims don’t report,” explained Dick. “We’re asking that Congress make some changes and we’re suggesting that people call their senators and representatives about this issue. The more the word gets out, the more will change.”
Madeline Di Nonno, executive director of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, cited a recent GDI study that revealed only 0.9 percent of military characters in prime-time television were female, and noted that the general underrepresentation of women and their objectification in the media leads to a culture where disrespect and devaluation can occur. Davis herself gave the event’s keynote address, explaining how she launched the institute in 2004 to foster positive portrayals and eliminate gender stereotypes, especially in children’s media.
A study found that even in G-rated movies, Davis said, “the female characters were either highly stereotyped or hypersexualized. The aspirations of females were almost completely limited to finding romance.” She noted that it’s a “profoundly negative message,” one that can damage impressionable kids, perpetuating “the notion that women are less important than men.”
Armed with research data, Davis has gone directly to media creators to make them aware of the problem. “Girls need to see female characters taking up the space that’s rightfully theirs,” said Davis, 57, who has a daughter and twin sons. “All of us need to leverage our combined influence to advocate for gender equality right now, for our kids.”
Photo credit: Cinedigm/Docurama Films
