If You Don’t Report It, No One Will Know How Bad It Is

LTC Francesca Graham (Army – United States Military Academy), Director of Operations, Joint Staff, J2X, authored this article. The opinions and views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not represent the official policies, positions, or endorsements of the U.S. Army, the Department of Defense, or any other government entity. (Published January 20th, 2024)

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Did You Know: Military commanders, as well as senior leaders in the Defense Intelligence Agency, hide from Congress the true number of allegations of Military Sexual Trauma in their organization by refusing to report the allegations using their Service’s official reporting tools, such as the Army’s DA Form 7746.

Here are some potential implications of this fact:

1. Commanders and senior leaders protect the reputation of their organization – “MST doesn’t happen here!” – and themselves – “I set the tone that stopped MST!” – thus ensuring the steady recruitment of more victims into their organization, their own promotion, their forward progression through the ranks, and assumption of higher levels of leadership positions.
2. Commanders and senior leaders protect the predators instead of the victims.
3. Predators cannot help but understand the actions of the military commanders and/or senior leaders as a green light to continue their predatory behavior.
4. The victims of MST will not have a full understanding of the resources available to them to cope with their trauma, thus ensuring the victim is revictimized by the predator and even their own leadership cadre who will attempt to isolate, confuse, and manipulate (gaslight) the victim into silence.
5. Victims will depart the organization as soon as they are able to escape the predator and their apathetic military commanders / senior leaders.
6. The victim’s departure, while necessary for the victim’s own health, creates a knowledge vacuum of an organizational culture that protects predators and attacks victims who attempt to report MST.
7. Military Sexual Violence continues… unchecked.

?A question to ask yourself is if it is so easy to hide the true numbers of Military Sexual Trauma from Congress, should Congress consider amending existing laws, such as the Feres Doctrine, or developing new laws to encourage leaders within the Department of Defense to fulfill their leadership obligations to their subordinates, and to be honest about what is happening within their formations.

If you feel that you have been a victim of this "Did You Know" highlight, feel free to reach out privately or share your story in the comments.