I just finished watching the documentary The Invisible War this morning.  It is about the epidemic of sexual assault that has taken place and continues to take place within all branches of the United States Military.  It is about the systematic cover-up of these crimes resulting in the continued and repeated victimization of sexual assault survivors.  It is about the continuing scandals surrounding sexual harrassment and assault, the promises to overhaul the system, and the resulting inaction.

Internal US government statistics and estimates indicate that approximately 25% of female service members and 1% of male service members have been sexually assaulted during their time in the service.  A male victim was interviewed for this film, but the focus, rightly, was most definitely on the female victims.  It concentrated on a handful of women who were ready to talk about their experiences of assault and the physical, emotional, and psychological toll that came afterwards.  They talked to parents and spouses of these people, many in the military themselves, and brought forward the emotional trauma that they witnessed and suffered.  One particularly heart-wrenching moment was a husband describing how he was calling 911 with one hand while with the other, trying to stop his wife from killing herself.

I don’t have adequate words to describe how this documentary moved me emotionally.  The best I can do is give is a very short piece of advice: you must watch this!