January 26, 2012
Film Reveals “The Invisible War” on Women in Our Military

newwavefeminism:

from the article:

The documentary “The Invisible War” premiered last week at Sundance, and it is already bringing much needed attention to the problem of rape in the military. Watching clips from the film last fall, I found the experience harrowing. I was struck by the sense of betrayal as well as violation that too many women, and a smaller number of men, encounter when they sign up to protect the national interest. It is just really hard to watch one after another woman tell us how she was assaulted, how authorities failed to protect her both before and after the attack, and how post-traumatic stress disrupts every attempt to rebuild her life. As tough as it is to witness, though, it has to be harder to live, and more witnesses are clearly needed to pressure military leaders to act. Their failure to do so is unforgivable, in a time when a woman is more likely to be raped by an American soldier than killed by enemy fire.

what lesson can we learn from this? Powerful institutions love to cover up rape/mistreatment and neglect the necessary steps needed to stop these atrocities from happening… from colleges to prisons to even the military. Is maintaining the reputation of the military at home and abroad WORTH sacrificing the dignity of the people who put their lives aside to sign up for these institutions? short answer: yes. These are fundamental flaws that can only really be changed when we have higher awareness of not only the problem but WHY the problem is not being dealt with - no one likes accusing institutional state apparatuses of corruption or wrongdoing. Thus, institutions are going to keep making up their own rules and practices until we stop being afraid to question them at their core.

another interesting things brought up in the article is the lack of WOC represented in the story:

The film itself features no women of color among the major protagonists. I don’t know why that is, and I won’t speculate. I do know that thousands of young women of color join the military every year; it isn’t possible that they could escape a fate that affects so many soldiers. I bet women of color are disproportionately affected by sexual assault, as they were by Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and, as we reported earlier this week, by homelessness when they return stateside as veterans. I hope that advocates working on this issue take into account additional or just different barriers faced by women of color. Putting proposed remedies through a racial equity impact analysis may help with that.

This causes me to wonder, is it easier to gain support for a movement that utilizes only a CERTAIN imagery of “womanhood” and female enlisters? Is there something about seeing white victimization that garners concern and action that we lose when WOC are put into the picture?
Is anyone more familiar with this movie who would like to share their thoughts?

2:53pm  |   URL: http://tmblr.co/ZNoexxFPeEBt
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    newwavefeminism, commenting on The Invisible War
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  9. putsch answered: i’m wondering if any women of color felt comfortable or safe sharing their experience. that might have influenced why they weren’t shown
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  14. yanettramirez answered: yochannel univision spoke on a study that said that WOC (latinas and afr.amer women) were the least likely to report sexual assault
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