<p>A lot of the guys say it’s not a problem. But then these are the same guys who just. won’t. stop. with the jokes and such. Also, statistically, you’re more likely to become part of those statistics in your own dorm/barracks room. The problem is not the “unknown attacker in the bushes,” it’s the inebriated hookup at the bar. </p>
<p>WAMom68 - Some of the harassment is not from being threatened, but from being uber-macho in the first place. Buckner was a lot worse than the academic year for harassment for several reasons. Some was just the unending opportunity since you live so close together but some of it was from being immersed in combat arms stuff day after day. Knowing that “Girls can’t go combat arms,” the “you don’t belong here, you’re worthless, you’re taking experience (leadership positions) that would be more valuable to me because I wanna be infantry” level was extremely high. There’s only a short step between “You don’t belong here because you can’t be a real soldier and go to combat” and “You owe me because I am a real soldier.” Of course, this attitude is wrong because women do serve in combat and get wounded and killed and “close with and destroy the enemy in close combat.” (Cribbed from the mission of the Infantry)</p>
<p>This attitude of “you don’t belong here” isn’t only limited to cadet. Sometimes instructors can put their foot into their mouths just as easily. While I was taking SOLIC (Special Operations, Low Intensity Combat - basically an overview of Special Forces and guerrilla warfare) I had a mandatory lecture from an SF TACNCO. He told us a bit about the program, the training, selection, and stuff like that. When he finished the presentation and opened the floor for questions, he turned the lights back on and finally got a good look at the audience. His first remark was, “What are all the females doing here?” Sad to say, the guys just laughed at this, while one of the other women managed to come up with something along the lines of “We’re also in the class, sergeant.” For the rest of the question and answer period, all of the women sat in uncomfortable silence, while he answered questions. As soon as we were dismissed we left immediately. It was later resolved, and he apologized to us through an e-mail that he sent to our instructor. Our instructor was highly embarrassed that his guest speaker treated his students in that manner. Worst of all, though, was that the speaker was a TAC. He’s supposed to mentor and inspire the cadets under him, not perpetuate stereotypes.</p>