Film: The Invisible War (2011)
Director: Kirby Dick (Outrage)
Genre: Documentary (93 minutes)
A black and white newsreel announces, “The privilege of serving one’s country is no longer limited to men.” This was a great victory for patriotic women who wanted to answer their nation’s call to serve. The film shows us several women… Robin, Trina, Gloria, Kori and others… from the Army, Navy, Coast Guard, Marines, and Air Force. Their reasons for joining are more or less what you’d expect… grew up in a military family… wanted to serve… wanted to see the world… wanted the challenge. Some of them have standout records of achievement. But when they talk very movingly about their sexual assaults, the mood changes… supervisor unlocking their door, coming in and raping them… being dragged at gunpoint and beaten… being ordered by a supervisor to drink too much… unanswered calls for help… disabilities from beatings… death threats… sexually transmitted diseases… pregnancies… and the horrors go on. According to US government statistics, in 1991, there had been 200 women were raped in the military. Today there are a half a million. And 80% of rape victims don’t report it.
Rape victims say they’re violated twice… once when they’re raped and again when they report it. Some have no choice but to report it because their injuries are so severe. The VA will keep them waiting for years, just to find out whether or not they’re going to pay for medical care. And what about getting justice? “Do you think this is a joke?” All too often the person who raped them is a supervisor… and the supervisor can… and usually does… squash investigations. While the Department of Defense claims a “zero tolerance policy,” convictions are shamefully low. Sentences are a joke. DOD’s concept of addressing the issue is to attempt to get women to accept the rapes as part of the job. (Women aren’t the only victims, by the way. But they are certainly the majority.) These crimes aren’t about sex… they’re about power and violence. Most rapists are predators and they go on to rape again and again, not getting caught until they’re out of the military.
This movie would be shocking if we weren’t already well aware of this issue. The 1991 Tailhook Convention scandal put this issue in the public eye. Many thought it would be addressed… and it has been… with Band-Aids and spin. A group of victims recently brought a civil suit against Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates… which has been dismissed. Two days after Defense Secretary Leon Panetta saw the film he ordered a significant change in how these cases are processed. A victim’s supervisor is no longer the one in charge of the investigation. It helps, but there still more that needs to be done. The military culture needs to change. A woman joining the military today has at least a 20% chance of being raped by a fellow soldier. What is it the army promises? “Be all that you can be.”
3 popped kernels
Good information, powerfully presented… hard to watch
Popcorn Profile
Rated: NR (Violence, sexual content)
Audience: Grown-ups
Distribution: Mainstream limited release
Mood: Sober
Tempo: Cruises comfortably
Visual Style: Unvarnished realism
Character Development: Not that kind of film
Language: True to life
Social Significance: Informative & thought provoking
