Granny Peace Brigade Blog

The Granny Peace Brigade takes the message to the March 6 Social Change at Fair Hunter College.

Did you know:
• Since 2002, over 66,000 women in the military have been victims of sexual abuse or rape.
• Incidents of rape and sexual assault in the military increased 73% between 2004 and 2006.
• In one VA center alone, 41% of female vets reported being the targets of sexual abuse while enlisted.
• 29% reported being victims of rape during their tour of duty.

H. Con. Res. 28 introduced by Representative Jane Harman (CA) is the first step in bringing desperately needed changes to the Department of Defense’s policies and procedures in handling cases of rape and sexual assault on women in the military. It calls for the Department Of Defense developing an effective, pro-active strategy for investigating and prosecuting cases of sexual abuse.

Rape and other acts of sexual assault against women in the U.S. Armed Forces have skyrocketed since 2002, including a staggering 73% increase in reported incidents from 2004 to 2006. These assaults are committed by U.S. military personnel, however the Department of Defense has failed to support the victims of this abuse. Investigations into reported instances have been inadequate, and prosecution and punishment almost nonexistent. Don’t stand by, stand up for the victims.

Grass Roots Action Technical Notes:
We asked the students to call their representatives on the spot. If they didn’t know who their representatives were we helped them find out. We explained that H. CON. RES. 28 is in committee and will not will not come up for a vote any time soon. When calling about recently introduced legislation that has been referred to a committee we ask our representatives to co-sponsor the legislation — unless they already have signed on. In that case we thank them.

Do you know who your representative is? Find and contact your elected officials via http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/

- Eva-Lee Baird and Fran Sears for the Granny Peace Brigade
Photos: Eva-Lee Baird

This entry was posted on Monday, March 9th, 2009 at 10:25 pm and is filed under Grass Roots Action, Legislative, Peace Fairs, Teachings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.