An official website of the United States government
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Every Airman responsible for preventing sexual assault

  • Published
  • By Scott King
  • 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE Wash, --  The Air Force and Fairchild Air Force Base are doing everything they can to identify and prevent sexual assault.

Earlier this month, Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Welsh III, re-emphasized to the Senate Armed Services Committee along with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and service chiefs from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard the Air Force's commitment to combating sexual assault within its ranks and improving care for victims when it does occur.

Sexual assault "undermines the mission effectiveness of our great force," Welsh said. "Nothing saddens me more than to know this cancer exists in our ranks."

According to Welsh, preventing sexual assault is every Airman's responsibility.

"Every Airman is either part of the solution or part of the problem," he said. "There is no middle ground."

Last week, newly appointed Air Force Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office Director, Maj. Gen. Margaret Woodward said, "The first thing we need to do is really get our arms around the extent of the problem. We need to understand the root issues that are exacerbating it, and connect with people inside and outside the Air Force that have creative ideas to fix the problem."

"Our Air Force leadership is putting all of their resources, energy and support behind this effort, and they're doing it for the right reasons," she said. "It's absolutely about caring for our Airmen."

At Fairchild, these resources, energy and support are kindled by the Sexual Assault Response Coordinator office, better enabling Airmen to take action.

The Fairchild SARC realizes the importance of Wingman culture when it comes to preventing sexual assault.

"I believe fellow Airmen are definitely a key in preventing this crime," said Jessica Bradshaw, Fairchild SARC. "We are here to help the victims of sexual assault by providing a safe, secure place for the victims, whether female or male, to start their recovery process. Our Airmen may be in a position to intervene before we have a perpetrator or victim of sexual assault."

Fairchild has a robust program to prevent sexual assault.

The base provides mandatory SAPR training for all active duty military members and DoD employees who supervise military members. It's also in the process of bringing in Rape Aggression Defense instructors to train 10 personnel who will provide annual training for all Airmen. The base currently has 29 victim advocates and is continuing to train more.

One of Fairchild's victim advocates, Airman 1st Class John Prieto, firmly believes in the importance of victims coming forward and the Wingman culture.

"The issue of sexual assault is not a problem that can be handled if kept in the dark," Prieto said. "Without victims coming forward, the perpetrators will continue to commit this crime and the military justice system will not be allowed to do its job. As far as the Wingman concept, I believe being a good wingman means you share a bond with other Airmen. You can be counted on to support each other, in all situations, both on and off duty. Just being there for your fellow Airmen is the biggest countermeasure to many problems including sexual assault."

The 92nd Air Refueling Wing commander, Col. Brian Newberry, stresses to wing members the importance of the Wingman philosophy when it comes to preventing sexual assault.

"It's absolutely vital that if a member of Team Fairchild sees sexual assault or harassment starting to occur, that they intervene, put an end to it and report it," Newberry said. "We will not tolerate this crime happening here and I want all my Wingmen to know this simple message - don't let it happen."
 
(Staff Sgt. David Salanitri contributed to this article)