66,342 female veterans report assaults from 2002 to 2008

Women vets' secret war: Sexual trauma

66,342 female veterans report assaults from 2002 to 2008 -- by their band of brothers.

By KIM ODE, Star Tribune
Last update: December 17, 2010 - 11:32 PM

Judy VanVoorhis knew that some men thought she had no business serving in the National Guard. How? She smiled fleetingly. "They told me." The military world often lacks the nuance of civilian life.

She had enlisted in 1985 and moved steadily through the ranks, becoming an instructor at an officer training school. In 1999, while at a conference, a group of instructors went out for supper.

"One guy seemed like he was trying to get everyone drunk, without drinking too much himself," she recalled. "I left, but he cornered me and tried to kiss me and I said I wasn't interested."

She went up to her room, only to discover that he'd followed her. She doesn't remember much about the assault that followed. "I was so shaken after it happened, I wanted to forget about it. You don't expect this from the people you're supposed to trust. I said no and that's all I had to say."

She might never have told anyone, had a male colleague not seen her flinch during a meeting when her attacker's name was mentioned. When he later pulled her aside to ask if she was OK, she told him everything. Turns out he had suspected as much.

"He told me, 'You're the fifth woman who's told me this same story.'"
read more here
Women vets secret war