SHARP summit: Discussing the emotional truth

By Sgt. Lance PoundsOctober 19, 2015

SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
1 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Gen. Darryl A. Williams, U.S. Army Africa commanding general and host of the 2015 Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program Summit, discusses the need to raise awareness of sexual harassment and assault related behaviors, Oct. 6 ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
2 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Maj. Gen. Darryl A. Williams, U. S. Army Africa commanding general and host of the 2015 Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program Summit, commends Sgt. Marquise Williams, a squad leader from 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, for... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
3 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Sgt. Marquise Williams (left), a squad leader assigned to 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, Sgt. Jacqueline Lenham (center), a culinary specialist assigned to 54th Brigade Support Battalion, and Sgt. Janay Nutter (right), a signal systems suppo... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
4 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Attendees of the 2015 Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program Summit put words on a board depicting multiple reasons why a person might want to serve in the military, then discuss how victims of sexual assault could lose those reaso... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
5 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Howard Fradkin, Ph.D., a psychologist with malesurvivor.org, discusses how one in four men have experienced some form of sexual assault, during the 2015 Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program Summit held Oct. 6 at the Golden Lion ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
SHARP Summit 2015: Discussing the hard truths
6 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A panel of survivors detail their personal accounts of male-to-male sexual assault during the 2015 Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention Program Summit held Oct. 6 at the Golden Lion conference center, Vicenza, Italy. Their testimonies, t... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

VICENZA, Italy - Most Soldiers in today's Army have had some form of sexual assault prevention training. In theory, they are empowered to make a difference. Truth is, sexual assault is still happening within the ranks of the Army, according to a 2014 RAND Corporation study.

Armed with this knowledge, the Department of the Army's senior leaders formulated the slogan, "Not in my squad, Not in our Army - We are trusted professionals," to drive awareness about the effects this type of behavior has on the organization, Soldiers and their families.

Maj. Gen. Darryl A. Williams, U.S. Army Africa commanding general, discussed the importance of Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program awareness with the Vicenza Military Community during the 2015 Junior Leader SHARP Summit, Oct. 6-7 at the Golden Lion conference center.

"Not in my Army!" Williams said loudly.

"This is not a legacy I want to leave behind," he added, referring to Soldiers in the room who reminded him of his own children who currently serve in the military.

William's high energy approach to addressing junior leaders of the VMC set the pace for the training.

"You have to get fired up," said Williams, adding this topic is a top priority for Army leaders. Monique Ferrell, Department of the Army SHARP program director, opened discussions with the reality of sexual assault and the impact it has on the Army. She encouraged attendees to listen to results from the RAND study that showed victims can be male as well as female. Ferrell said these facts can educate and explain how SHARP initiatives are being tailored to up-and-coming generation.

One of those initiatives is to treat people with dignity and respect.

Ferrell, in an attempt to establish an emotional connection between the audience and the initiative, asked the attendees to treat others as blood relatives.

"Would you grab you sister's breast?" Ferrell asked, directing her attention to male attendees.

"Would you touch your cousin's scrotum," she asked of female attendees.

"The answer is no, you wouldn't," said Ferrell. "There's no justifiable reason for such actions."

Following Ferrell's presentation, a panel of U.S. Army Garrison-Italy SHARP representatives stepped on to the stage. Their presence put faces to the names of those who provide SHARP education and support to the VMC.

One of the questions addressed was how SHARP leaders plan to change perceptions of victims and perpetrators at the unit level.

Dr. Kaffie Clark, Garrison SHARP coordinator, explained the SHARP program as a team effort.

"We operate from a place of strength not a place of weakness," said Clark. "Prevention begins with those who stand up for what is right and not look the other way."

The panel's Q-and-A discussions focused on plausible scenarios.

As a result, representatives discovered junior leaders were hungry for answers to the questions: What should I do if I witness sexual assault and what then? What happens to a perpetrator after I intervene? How do we weed out those who exhibit signs of the toxic behaviors?

Williams attributes this hunger to unintentional gaps in the Army's institutional training system caused by more than a decade of wartime mission. He added that young Soldiers were promoted through the ranks of sergeant and captain, possibly higher, with little official training on programs such as SHARP.

"We are now in a position to address these gaps in the system," said Williams.

SHARP representatives took a studious approach to bridging the gap through use of social media during the training.

Lauren Northrup, victim advocate for 173rd Airborne Brigade and native of Boulder, Co., discussed social media and the effect it may have on people.

She said many of attendees have likely engaged in some form of social media during the training.

"We are all connected but not truly connected," she said. "People who engaged in social media may miss or not understand the intended messages."

Northrup presented memes commonly found on the internet that represent the point of her discussion. Memes are images, videos or pieces of text that are typically humorous in nature and distributed by Internet users.

One in particular meme depicted a panda bear hunched over a log with text that read, "SEX_AL HARASS__NT, ALL THAT IS MISSING IS 'U' AND 'ME'."

"Do you see how desensitized we have become and how that degrades our organizations?" She asked.

Northrup followed the images with a music video depicting the victims of sexual assault.

All eyes intently focused on the video as vignettes of sexual assaults unfolded. Many attendees reacted emotionally to the images.

Michelle Demarais, USAG-Italy Sexual Assault Response coordinator, followed with an explanation of why the video was used for the training.

"We wanted to show how we don't really know what it feels like until it happens to us," said Demarais, a native of Redding, California.

The video and explanation hit home for Staff Sgt. Sophia Green-Rowe, of the 414th Contracting Support Brigade, Regional Contracting Office-Italy.

"I don't know if I have equipped my daughter for the world we live in," said Green-Rowe, a native of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Later Demarais discussed the topic of sexual consent, where she played a short animated video. The video depicted one person offering tea to another person and drew an analogy between serving tea and receiving consent for sexual activity.

The video presented a humorous scenario, which showed people it is OK to ask for consent but they must respect the response they are given even if that response changes.

She then ask the audience what consent looked like to them.

One Soldier said consent is not always verbal, referencing to body language.

"If you are sending signals, and the other person is sending signals, then...," said a Soldier from the audience, when suddenly a loud voice called out.

"There is no such thing as nonverbal consent," said Sgt. 1st Class Chico Wilkerson, USARAF audio and visual noncommission officer in charge.

Wilkerson said he has been married for 19 years and always asks his wife for consent.

Guest speaker, Howard Fradkin, Ph.D., a psychologist for malesurvivors.org, followed the discussion with a presentation on male sexual assault within the military.

Fradkin discussed male-on-male sexual assault, pointing out that one in four men have experienced some form of sexual assault.

Fradkin explained that trust is a fundamental trait in work relationships and is instrumental to establish in the early stages of any service member's career.

"During basic training you are taught to trust the person next to you," Fradkin said. "Sexual assault betrays that trust."

Fradkin first defined sexual victimization, then discussed the statistics of it, based on information collected from the RAND study.

"It is not an act of sex; rather an act of control," he said.

"More than half of men are assaulted by those of higher power," said Fradkin. "And in most cases, someone they knew and trusted."

Fradkin discussed how offenders try to create a false reality for the victims in order to get away with what they have done or set conditions for repeated offenses.

"Offenders depend on their victims to reach climax to mentally deter them from thinking the act is anything other than OK," Fradkin said.

Fradkin invited three survivors of male sexual assault to join him on the stage to share their traumatic experiences.

Each of the survivors were prior military service members from different backgrounds and experiences.

The survivors had two things in common, they served in the military and suffered unwanted sexual trauma.

During the survivor's presentation, the audience sat in transfixed silence.

Each testimony pulled at the heart, evoking intense emotional responses.

Graphic details proved too much for some attendees to hear; compelling them leave the room.

Following the testimonies, the audience gave the presenters a standing ovation. The gesture symbolized the audience's overwhelming respect for the survivors and the courage it took to share their experiences with them.

Some Soldiers, with tears in their eyes, spoke of personal affirmations to prevent such acts from happening on their watch as they offered comforting embraces to each survivor.

Williams approached the stage and offered a brief summary.

"I know that was a lot to take in," said Williams. He then invited all attendees to return for day two of the summit.

On the second day of the SHARP summit, Williams hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the grand opening of a USAG-Vicenza SHARP resource center.

The center will offer the VMC a safe place to talk with professionals capable of offering information or support.

"This facility will create a safe haven for all," said Williams.

Day two of the summit was divided into two segments. The first segment of the day involved more discussions aimed at educating junior leaders on the topic of sexual harassment/assault response and prevention. The second half was directed towards senior leaders.

Two junior leaders were chosen to remain at the summit for the senior leader discussions. Their presence bridged the gap between junior and senior leaders.

Some junior leaders said they felt their superiors were not taking SHARP seriously enough.

Command Sgt. Maj. Jeffery Stitzel, USARAF senior enlisted advisor, said junior leaders evoke the most change.

"Senior leaders do not see every Soldier in their unit every single day, but you do," said Stitzel.

"I need you all to be the agents of change in our Army," Williams added.