WHAT IF IT WAS YOUR FAMILY MEMBER OR FRIEND?
Topic: Prevention/Inappropriate Work Relationships
Module: 2 – Bystander Intervention and 4 – Sexual Assault
Situation: Rape and a prior consensual sexual relationship
It is common knowledge throughout the entire unit, to include leadership, that a female NCO, SGT Spears is having an affair with an Instructor, CPT Dudley. Both members are married. They commonly request to go TDY together so they can spend time alone in the hotel. One evening, the entire team is at the hotel bar having a few drinks. SGT Spears is the first to retire to her room. CPT Dudley stays with the guys at the bar for a little while longer. He brags to the guys about their sex life. However, he complains that she won’t have anal sex with him. He laughs and says, “until tonight”. He then shows a zip lock baggie to the guys that has 2 Ambien capsules in it. He says that he put one in her drink and leaves to go to her room.
Solution:This vignette demonstrates inappropriate relationships with co-workers. SGT Spears and CPT Dudley are both married, yet involved in a sexual relationship. It also explores the fact that prior sex does not mean that CPT Dudley can drug someone to benefit himself. The teammates had the obligation to intervene (direct, delegate, distract) and stop CPT Dudley from committing this sexual assault. There are potential legal consequences and could be considered an attempted sexual assault. CID needs to be called, as well as medical.
Topic: Bystander Intervention/Inappropriate Sexual Comments
Module:2 – Bystander Intervention and 4 – Sexual Assault
Situation:Soldiers TDY for Training
You and 3 of your friends from your unit are sent TDY to attend training. It’s Friday night and you and your friends are in the lobby of the hotel. A family walks by, recognizes you as Soldiers, and thanks you for your service. Then you notice an attractive woman walking across the lobby. As she walks by and gets in the elevator, SGT Marks begins to make crude gestures and remarks referring to her body and clothes, and states, “Man, I would like to tap that.” The two guys in the group laugh it off and SGT Marks gives the other two fist bumps and extends his fist to you…..
Solution: This vignette demonstrates verbal sexual harassment. Whether the unnamed attractive woman heard his remarks or not, it was still highly inappropriate. The other people involved should have spoken up and told SGT Marks to cut it out. Possible reasons they did not say anything are fear of ostracism or retaliation.
Topic: Inappropriate work conversations
Module: 2 – Bystander Intervention and 3 – Sexual Harassment
Situation: Workplace Discussions
Ms. Leslie Red is a DA Civilian who works in an office cubicle, One day, Mr. Phil Orange, the section leader, stopped by Mr. Wallace Brown’s cubicle, and the conversation turned to a discussion of Leslie’s breasts and butt. Phil says he would like to take Leslie to the break room and “show her a few things.” Leslie did not hear any of it, but two other co-workers, Ms. Karen Blue, and Mr. Jimmy Green, sitting unseen in the adjacent cubicles, heard the comments. Karen noticed that Phil’s conversation upset Jimmy.
Later in the day, Jimmy tells Karen that he does not want to work with Phil or Wallace because this is not the first time he’s heard them having sexually explicit conversations. He doesn’t want to work with either of them if that’s how they are going to talk about women. Jimmy also said he was going to tell Leslie about the remarks he overheard.
Jimmy tells Leslie about Phil and Wallace’s conversation. Leslie becomes very angry and decides something needs to be done.
Solution: Ms. Red and Mr. Brown, who are obviously offended by Mr. Orange’s inappropriate behavior could file sexual harassment complaint against Mr. Orange. They could use one of the 3Ds - Direct, Delegate and Distract. For instance, Ms. Red, the complainant, could use the delegate approach and have a peer or supervisor confront the harasser by telling Mr. Orange to stop the sexual harassment behavior. If the behavior persists, Ms. Red can take it to the Chain of Command (COC) and/ the SHARP VA who will contact the BDE SARC. The BDE has the responsibility to explain what an informal complaint vs a formal complaint entails without trying to influence Ms. Red in anyway. Ms. Red would have to make the decision which course of action to take.
Topic: Nonconsensual Behavior
Module: 2 – Bystander Intervention
Situation: Holiday Party
The unit always hosts an annual holiday part. Ms. Sheena Harold attended and brought alcohol pre-mixed in her “water bottle”. Sheena struck up a conversation with Mr. Randy Johnson and several other employees. Sheena told Randy she brought the good stuff and asked if he’d like to take a sip. He took her up on the offer.
After a few more drinks, Randy started slurring his words and it was obvious to others at the table he was intoxicated. Sheena suggested they go outside to get some fresh air but Randy declined and said that he needed to use the bathroom.
Sheena told coworkers she was going to check on Randy. She followed him down the hallway to the bathroom, noticing that he was unable to stand on his own and is hugging the wall. As Randy entered the bathroom, he vomits onto the floor and asks where he is. Sheena put her foot down so he could not close the door. She entered the bathroom with Randy and locked the door behind them.
Solution: The vignette has two major issues that need to be addressed, Consent and Bystander Intervention. Randy Johnson is intoxicated and may be incapable of consenting to sexual activity and what Ms. Sheena Harold is up to in the bathroom with Randy Johnson behind the locked the door. Reference the following sentence from the definition of Consent, (B) A sleeping, unconscious, or incompetent person cannot consent. All Army Soldiers and civilians must understand what the meaning of consent is and comply.
The second issue is that in order to effectively eliminate sexual harassment and sexual assault from our Army we must all take responsibility to our as Army professional and not just be Bystanders but must actively intervene when we observe something suspicious like what occurred between Ms. Sheena Harold and Randy Johnson in the locked stall in the bathroom.
