Military Review English Edition March-April 2014 | Page 33

SHARP BEST PRACTICES from the perception that the problems the military faces reflect larger, intractable societal issues (e.g., gender equality issues, the glamorization of alcohol and binge drinking, the hook-up culture, etc.). Reports of high rates of sexual assaults in colleges and universities reinforce this belief, leaving some to conclude that the problem of sexual assault is no worse in the military than in any other segment of society.4 Such conclusions can be troublesome because at best, they allow us to rationalize the extent of the sexual assault problem in the military, and at worst, they let us abdicate responsibility. How can we be asked to solve a problem that the rest of society or other institutions cannot solve? Rather than trying to solve the Army’s sexual harassment and assault problem overnight, units should set their sights on tangible goals and objectives. More importantly, we should strive to do a little a lot. If this truly is the Army’s top priority, frequency is a must. However, meaningful engagement need not require intensive use of time or other resources. Brown-bag lunches, seminars, sensing sessions, and informal surveys go a long way toward continued identification of problems, sustained command emphasis, and solicitation of new initiatives aimed at prevention. I have witnessed too many fellow soldiers expressing frustration because solving the Army’s sexual assault problem will require changing the Army’s culture. The sentiment is well founded because solving the problem will require changing the culture, a process considered slow and difficult at best. However, we need not be resigned to this prospect or assume culture change occurs only over successive generations. We can change the Army’s culture by doing a little a lot. Listen More Than You Talk Our unit has found it useful to conduct all of our SHARP training and engagement in small seminars with no more than 15-18 soldiers at a time. Moving away from mandated videos and PowerPoint presentations in packed classrooms to discussion-based seminars in a more intimate setting has not only resulted in a greater engagement among the training audience, but it has also unearthed a number of tangible initiatives we can implement at the unit level to help prevent U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno gives his remarks at the Sexual Harassment/Assault Prevention Summit in Leesburg, Va., 8 May 2012. (U.S. Army, Staff Sgt. Teddy Wade) MILITARY REVIEW March-April 2014 31