Documentary Reveals America's "Invisible War"

Members of the United States Senate are in the process of trying to pass legislation that would create an independent an unbiased military justice system.  S.1752 also known as the Military Justice Improvement Act (MJIA) is a bipartisan bill proposal.  The idea for S.1752 is derived from the overwhelming problem of sexual assaults in the United States military.

The problem of sexual assaults in the military is documented in the movie Invisible War.  Written by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, the documentary tells the story of several women and men veterans who were sexually harassed, assaulted, or raped by other members of the military while serving the country.

The documentary reveals that prosecuting sexual assault cases in the military can be difficult because of how the current military justice system operates.  One expert in the documentary says that the average sex offender has over 300 victims in their lifetime.  Most offenders do not get caught and only 5% or less of reported offenders are convicted.

The Invisible War documentary also indicates that:

* 40% of homeless female veterans were raped while they were serving in the military.

* Women who have been raped in the military have a PTSD rate higher than men who have been in combat.

* 33% of servicewomen did not report their rape because the person to report to was a friend of the rapist.

* 25% of servicewomen did not report their rape because the person to report to was the rapist.

Anyone can be a victim of sexual assault.  Our men and women in the armed forces deserve a justice system that will protect them from criminal acts and uphold high standards of conduct in the military.  

For more information about the Invisible War visit: http://www.notinvisible.org/