FORT SILL, Okla. (April 3, 2014) -- The emphasis for the 2014 Sexual Assault Awareness month during April is "Live Our Values: Step Up to Stop Sexual Abuse."
A key component of the awareness month for military and DA civilians is being an "active bystander." This means Soldiers and civilians should intervene to prevent sexual harassment and assaults by being aware of sexual assault situations and speaking up. Second, individuals should intervene when it is safe to do so, and finally, they should act to stop the improper behavior.
According to Department of Defense guidelines from the Safe Helpline website on sexual assault, the DoD has linked sexual assault prevention to a Soldier's duty. In other words, it is a service member's moral duty to pay attention to situations that put their friends, battle-buddies and co-workers at risk.
As part of sexual assault awareness month at Fort Sill, the Cannoneer recently sat down with two medical staffers from Reynolds Army Community Hospital to discuss the problem of sexual assault. Shalome Hancox-Palomo is a licensed clinical social worker who serves as a sexual assault care coordinator, and Sandra Combs, who is a sexual assault response coordinator at the hospital.
Cannoneer: What is the "active bystander" program and how are military personnel and civilians being encouraged to take action?"
Combs: "The military has been promoting the "bystander" approach as part of the the SHARP training. Fort Sill has what is called "MVP Mentors in Violence Prevention," which is like the bystander's intervention program. Soldiers and civilians alike are given different types of scenarios on how to intervene and shown what they could have done to stop an assault or harassment at the lowest level, instead of letting it escalate to a higher level. And that's important because bystanders can now be held accountable in certain situations, such as a sexual assault that escalates into a homicide
Hancox-Palomo: "From the treatment perspective, we want to get the message out that there is help available for victims of sexual assault, because people are sometimes not sure how to get that help. We also know that trauma from childhood can affect somebody into adulthood, and they need to know how to cope with new situations."
Cannoneer: How are personnel here being prepared to deal with these situations?
Combs: "The sexual assault training we provide Soldiers and civilians alike is to help them understand what to look for if they see or hear something that is sexually inappropriate. They should know how to safely intervene, and how to respond to stop the unwanted behavior. That's what we want to put out to the military community and the civilian sector, because sexual assault crosses both ways."
Cannoneer: Why do you think some people seem to approach the SHARP training with an air of indifference?
Hancox-Palomo: "Part of the problem is how people view the problems of sexual harassment and assault, and how they approach the subject matter. If a person has never been a victim, then they may tend to blow it off as "Whatever." But for individuals who have experienced these types of harassment or assault, the severity of it runs much deeper."
Combs: "When a lot of people hear the terms "sexual harassment" or "sexual assault," they think it is a women's-only issue but it is not. It can be either male or female issues, and it is prevalent in both the military and civilian sectors."
Cannoneer: So being trained as an "active bystander" gives our Soldiers and civilians a chance to respond on behalf of the victims?
Combs: "Well, if one person steps up and says "I'm not going to tolerate this anymore. This has got to stop," then they can make a difference. And the more people who step forward, the more they will be heard, because harassment and assault is all about control. A perpetrator wants to control the victim and force them do stuff that they don't want to do, regardless of the rules and regulations out there."
Hancox-Palomo: "Some individuals are reluctant to become involved when they see something happening, because they have been victims themselves. It opens up a lot of internal issues they may not be ready to face, so they choose to remain silent rather than get involved. But if they learn to speak up and intervene, they can play an important role in preventing other sexual harassments and assaults."
Cannoneer: What other resources are available here for sexual assault victims?
Hancox-Palomo: "We have a complete team of medical and mental health providers who work with victims, and that includes sexual assault providers. When a victim comes to the ER, they are accompanied by a SHARP representative who will notify the me, the sexual assault care coordinator. I meet with the victim to offer the support of counseling. As a mental health provider I am able to see them within 48 hours, and provide supportive counseling here if they choose, or refer them to another mental health provider here on post or out in the civilian community."
Combs: "It's up to the client as to what they want to do. We give the control back to that person, that client who came forward, regardless of whether they want to go restricted or unrestricted, because we want them to start making the choices. Because of the assault, the choice was taken away from them. We're here to give them back the power to make their own choices."
For immediate assistance regarding sexual harassment and sexual assault, contact your unit or office SHARP representative. You can also call the following numbers for help:
Fort Sill Sexual Assault Hotline 580-91SHARP (7-4277); or the DoD SAFE Helpline 877-995-5247. For additional information, go to www.safehelpline.org.
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