 |
| November 13, 2013 Dear WAND Activists,
As early as next week, the Military Justice Improvement Act (S. 967) could be voted into law, giving survivors of sexual abuse in our military their first real opportunity to safely share their stories and to seek justice for the violent crimes perpetrated against them.
As early as next week, the Military Justice Improvement Act could be defeated on the Senate floor, silencing survivors of military sexual abuse and allowing impunity for the criminals who have perpetrated these horrific attacks.
Our service women and men need our help now! We can't let them down by failing to pass the reforms that will allow them to bring their attackers to justice. Call or email your Senators now! Ask your Senators to support the Military Justice Improvement Act (S. 967) to secure justice for victims of military sexual assault.
Recently, the New York Times reported that newly released Pentagon figures show that "sexual assault in the military increased sharply during the last fiscal year." This finding was shared just weeks before the Military Justic Improvement Act (MJI)—a bill that aims to remedy this exact problem—is expected to hit the Senate floor as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Currently, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), who introduced the MJI Act in May 2013, has a total of 46 allies in support of the bill. Forty-six supporters is an enormous achievement, but it is not enough; 60 votes must be secured to ensure passage of this critical legislation!
Sexual violence, including rape, is a crime of unspeakable immorality. It violates every level of one's security, privacy and dignity. Yet, such abuses of women and men are routinely overlooked and underreported. This has proven especially true within our military, where only 13% of assaults were reported in 2012, the key reasons being the low rate of prosecution, the adverse effects reporting can create for the victim, and the inherent bias within the military's current justice system.
The Military Justice Improvement Act will fix this broken system by having an independent military lawyer determine which cases of sexual assault are tried. This restructured system will lessen victims' fear of retaliation for reporting, and it will increase the rate of prosecution of perpetrators of sexual violence.
Our service women and men risk their lives to protect our country. Now- not tomorrow, not next week, but right now in this moment, is the time for us to fulfill our duty as American citizens and protect our troops by ensuring their right to a proper, unbiased trial.
Call or Email your Senators now! Ask them to fulfill their duty to our troops. Demand that they ensure the personal security of military personnel by voting to support the Military Justice Improvement Act (S. 967)!
Our Sincere Thanks,
The WAND Team
For more information on this topic, please visit our blog at: http://wandnational.tumblr.com/
For updates on the National Defense Authorization Act, please visit: http://servicewomen.org/
Additional Resources include:
|
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
ACT HERE TO STOP SEXUAL ABUSE IN U.S. MILITARY
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment