As a project for my internship (at Redwoods Veterans Center), I was one of the organizers for the "Honoring Women Veterans Day" event on November 6th. It was a great experience both organizing and attending the event; it ended up being bigger than I expected, about 90 folks were there, 2/3rd of those being women vets. There was a diverse group of women that attended, age wise it ranged from 22-90. Sisters of different ethnicities, social-economic groups, sexual orientations, type of military experiences and branches of service attended. It was a moving event for many including me. One of the women I have been around who has difficulty in crowds attended most of the event and I even witnessed her smile, which I had never seen her do before. That in of itself was quite a reward! It was an honor to have the presence of "pioneers;" women who served during WWII and Korea that helped us move toward integration. The event making the Saturday Times-Standard was truly icing on the cake.
I posted the article below. (Note: In the interview, I used the word "survivor" rather than "victim.")
Later, after reading a couple of comments on the article online I realized how some people do not understand the importance and reasoning behind such an event. I also have been thinking about why the event was so moving; there are many reasons. I saw women feeling truly acknowledged and appreciated, some for the first time. They felt like veterans that deserve as much honor and respect as any other veteran. I don't think this could have happened at an event for all veterans. At all veterans’ events I have attended in the past, very few women show up and some veterans clubs, until myself and another woman joined a few years ago, were all male and had been so for years. (Since, other women have joined local vets organizations.)
Even a female vet from WWII didn’t understand what all the hoop-la was about and why the only males present were guests of women vets or volunteers; she asked “what’s the big deal about women vets?” I talked to her about how this event was meant to address issues specific to female veterans and provide a place where women feel comfortable to identify as vets and identify with the challenges other women have faced, be proud of their service and celebrate their resiliency. The event also provided information about available services.
My husband, a Marine Corps vet that was my guest at the event, said he talked to this particular vet and discovered she didn’t know that she rated a Non-commissioned officer (NCO) sword when she became a corporal. I don’t know if you know any Marines, but this is a big deal, and if any branch is into tradition, it’s the Corps. (In fact, it can be almost annoying, trust me!) My husband was blown away that she didn’t know, my understanding of how important earning the sword is (even if you can’t afford one) spoke volumes, though she was a member of a group, she was not privy to what she had earned.
In my work and out in the community, I often notice that women vets do not talk about their service with others and if they do, they often discount their roles. Frequently they stay away from events for all veterans. Generally, this is different than how the majority of male veterans operate; connecting with other vets socially is common, primarily with other males. Additionally, they tend to openly acknowledge being veterans in public. Male veterans are more likely to receive services and benefits related to their service; this has been acknowledged by the VA and Vet Centers are being called on to do outreach specifically designed for women vets, though no funding for this endeavor has been provided. (Local veterans’ clubs, rotary clubs and a private donation funded the local event.)
To receive services you have to 1) identify yourself as a veteran worthy of services 2) go through steps to both seek and be approved for services and 3) be eligible based on governmentally set criteria. I find that women sometimes don't see themselves as someone who could get services, even if they are just as qualified as men. If they do seek services, VA facilities have a male-bias, though they are working to improve their services, there still is a long way to go. There is a lack of access of female care providers (to include the local clinic, there is no female provider to address gynecological issues) and some VA facilities do not welcome the presence of children with a veteran parent or caregiver. During a recent hearing of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, one of the advocates reported that a woman was turned away from a clinic and told not to come back until she had procured child care; it was also reported that many facilities do not have changing tables. http://veterans.senate.gov/hearings.cfm?action=release.display&release_id=96d956e4-9951-495c-a74f-89274ba92e3e Though this could affect fathers with children, it is mostly affecting females, as females are still primary caregivers. Not only is the VA still warming up to the idea of women's needs the other clients women come across affect their experience; in VA facilities, regulars in the VA system are still becoming accustomed to seeing women veterans receiving services. In my own experience, people oftentimes think I am waiting for my father or husband, maybe even a grandpa. VA facilities also need to be more sensitive to that fact that many women veterans have experienced sexual trauma at the hands of mostly male perpetrators.
Oppression manifests itself in many ways, is often perpetuated by institutions, and acts of oppression have both immediate and long-lasting effects. Military sexual trauma (MST) is a huge issue; cited by Debbe Hemmer, LPC at the event, one in five women report having experienced sexual trauma, which includes harassment, coercion into sexual activity and sexual assault. This is underreported because in my experience a lot of women think their experience “doesn’t count;” even for myself, I thought for a long time that this only included rape. (MST is also very underreported for men.) Severe harassment and other acts that create a hostile work environment do have significant impacts on those who live such an experience. Name-calling is common, all horrible words, so I decided not to list them here.
The leaving of military women’s accomplishments (like the missions women flew during WWII) out of or minimized in dominant history (that is a big one in of itself…another day), physical and sexualized violence, name-calling, and the male-biased services of the VA are all examples of oppression that women veterans have faced. In the process of oppression, the creation of "otherness" by the dominant group can be so pervasive that those being perpetrated against, actually began to believe the lies they are fed about themselves, and may also accept the blame, and be blind to the damage it has caused.
I believe that in an ideal world, we would not need to have specialized events, meetings and programs/services for particular groups, because the circumstances of an unjust world that create such needs would be no more. Women would be viewed as men are as just veterans, their faces, along side men’s, would make up the dominant definition of what veteran is. To some the image of a veteran is an old white man with a VFW hat on; many times my husband and I are told by people we meet, “you don’t look like veterans” we always ask, “what is a veteran supposed to look like?”
Though I wish the war would end and would have like for it to never have started in the first place, this war is allowing women to be seen in a different way. Already progress is being made, younger women are calling themselves veterans and the military is the most integrated then it has ever been. Outreaching women to rally them around the issues I have discussed as well as acknowledging and building on their strength, courage and resiliency is vital to continuing this uphill battle.
As I have talked about the marginalization of women in the military and its effect, there are parallels to other marginalized groups. In Dr. Yellowbird’s Community Practice course, he talks about how much various forms of oppression still continue, affecting Indigenous Peoples. Oppressive images, like sports mascots and toys like “cowboys and Indians” are oftentimes not seen as an issue, sometimes even by Indigenous People themselves. In Cowboys and Indians: Toys of Genocide, Icons of American Colonialism, Dr. Michael Yellowbird (2004) discusses oppressive depictions of Indigenous peoples, why they are such and what to do about it. Images such as big-nosed Indian sports team mascots and words like “redskins” and “squaw” quickly come to mind. Cowboys and Indians have, for me, come to symbolize America’s past and present infatuation with colonization and genocide (Yellowbird, 2004).
According to Adams (...) the reduction of indigenous culture that has become mainstream "...is one of the most powerful shackles subjugating Aboriginal People, " "...blocking the road to self-determination" (qtd. in Yellowbird, 2004). Over generations, invisibility is formed around what is oppressive and its source; oppression can then be internalized. Internalized oppression can manifest itself in a number of ways to include depression and substance abuse. It seems to me that the negative effects of internalized oppression are blamed on the already marginalized group by the dominant group; these negative effects can then be framed as innate behaviors of a particular group, reinforcing the dominant group’s idea of superiority.
While battling oppression is an uphill battle, it needs to be believed that it is a battle worth fighting and one that can be one. Below are some wise words offering advice on decolonization—liberation from oppression.
“Such oppression can be transformed into liberating practices...” which can happen through community organizing (Pyles, 2009). Dominelli (2002), discusses organizing for social change as it relates to groups facing oppression: “…by constructing alternative discourses around their identity attributes, oppressed groups have been able to tackle the internalization of oppressive relations amongst their own members who have accepted the “naming” of their traits as inferior by the dominant group…Self-affirming activities re-author dominant discourses by challenging the view that it is not possible for oppressed people to ameliorate their situation. Placing affirming role models in the public domain, developing individual self-confidence, promoting positive images of the group and endorsing self-directed programs of action for part of the repertoire for building confidence in who they are. Through this process, individuals who have previously been excluded and are unable to participate in the expressions of citizenship in public arenas have found their voice and capacity to act in accordance with their own interests” (Pyles, 2009, 142).
"...this can change if Indigenous and non-Indigenous Peoples intelligently resist American colonialism and begin the process of decolonizing cowboys and Indians, beginning by telling the truth about the racist intent of the cowboys and Indians phenomenon. We must also intelligently interrogate and reform the colonial structure of this nation and challenge the written false histories of the American colonizer. Indigenous Peoples must consciously refuse to be little red plastic toy Indians participating in the racist American myths and policies of white colonial supremacy. Whites must refuse to be little blue plastic toy cowboys blindly accepting their position of privilege in society and, instead, truthfully amend this nation’s history and practice of colonialism while seeking justice on behalf of those they have colonized here and abroad. Until this is done, cowboys and Indians will continue to be toys of genocide, icons of colonialism" (Yellowbird, 2004).
Work Cited: Progressive Community Organizing: A Critical Approach for a Globalizing World by Loretta Pyles, 2009; Howard Adams, A Tortured People: The Politics of Colonization (Penticton, BC: Theytus Books, 1995), 1.
Women veterans not forgotten
Local women veterans of all ages were venerated Friday at the Honoring Women Veterans program at the Eureka Veterans Memorial Building.
About 90 people attended the event, including about 60 women veterans from ages 24 to 90. An all-female honor guard did a presentation of the colors and speakers addressed the crowd on issues specific to women veterans. The event is likely the first of its kind in Humboldt County and its hopefully not the last, said Amanda Stuart, MSW intern for the Redwood Veterans Center.
”Any woman veteran is always out there for another sister because women are still marginalized,” Stuart said.
Stuart served in the U.S. Navy from 2000 to 2004 and was on the U.S. George Washington when it responded to the Sept. 11 attacks. She said although she enjoyed her military experiences, there were times it was tough to be a woman.
”I felt like I had to prove myself every time I put on a uniform,” she said.
The Honoring Women Veterans program not only showed appreciation to former women in arms, but speakers at the event also discussed issues that affect women veterans, including sexual trauma, Stuart said. Many women veterans don't consider themselves victims of sexual trauma but can become agitated and upset later in life and not understand the cause.
About one in five women report being sexually harassed in the military.
The Redwood Veterans Center offers counseling for combat veterans and for the victims of military sexual trauma.
The event's main focus Friday was to show women veterans they aren't alone and are appreciated.
”It's to honor women and to let them know they're veterans,” she said.
A spokeswoman from the county Veterans Service Office, Rene Maveety, also spoke at the event, asking the attendees to come into her office for help in filing for benefits. The system is constantly changing and women veterans especially need to have courage to demand their benefits.
”Of course, you had courage when you joined the biggest men's club in the world,” Maveety said to the crowd Friday.
From the Redwood Veterans Center, Team Leader Mary Baker helped organize the event and she hopes to run the event next year if they can enlist the help of enough volunteers, she said.
”We've got a new generation of fighters coming up and we're working to make it easier for them,” Baker said.
Many women often do not talk about their military experiences and this is an outlet to assist them, Baker said.
Allison White can be reached at 441-0506 or awhite@times-standard.com.
Related Event on Humboldt State Campus...
The Women's Resource Center on campus is sponsoring an open discussion about PTSD Monday, November 16, 2009 at 5:30 in Siemens Hall 110. This supportive space will look at how people with PTSD can support one another and will be facilitated by Paula Arrow-Smith Jones from North Coast Rape Crisis Team.
