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