THE HARD TRUTH
OVER 14,000 SOLDIERS
WERE SEXUAL ASSAULTED
IN 2016 ALONE.
THE HARD TRUTH
SERVICE MEMBERS ARE 39%
MORE LIKELY THAN CIVILIANS TO BE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED
ONLY 2% - 10%
OF REPORTED SEXUAL ASSAULTS ARE FALSE
1 IN 3 SERVICE MEMBERS EXPERIENCE SEXUAL ASSAULT
According to data collected from FBI reports, in 2016, there were 95,730 rapes in the United States. With a population of 323.4 million, that's 29 rapes occurring per 100,000 residents. The Department of Defense, with a little over 1.2 million active duty service members, reported 14,900 sexual assaults for that same year.
That's over 1,000 sexual assaults for every 100,000 service members.
This is unacceptable. When you sign up to serve your country, you shouldn't be nearly 40% more likely to be sexually assaulted.
We also don't want people falsely accused of rape or service members punished preemptively for accusations that haven't been substantiated. It's difficult to handle sexual assault allegations, but the military has to do better than how these assaults being handled now.
ADDITIONAL FINDINGS
SERVICE WOMEN'S ACTION NETWORK
SWAN surveyed about 1,300 servicewomen. In the responses, 49% noted that their mental health was negatively affected by gender bias, sexual harassment, and sexual assault—even more so than combat, and despite the fact that some servicewomen were assaulted during a deployment.
Additionally, 61% have been clinically diagnosed with a stress disorder or depression.
THE QUESTION:
What specifically about military service most positively or negatively impacted, or is impacting, your mental health?
[Data collected from 963 responses.]
MST
or Sexual Abuse 30%
Sexual Harassment 11%
Combat Deployment 9%
Sexism or gender 8%
Discrimination
*DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
Officer/Enlisted Demographics Both 6% (85) Enlisted 76% (997) Officer 18% (234) In 2017, SWAN conducted a comprehensive survey to evaluate the mental wellness needs of military women. To view the full results of the survey go to www.servicewomen.org