When Army Sgt. Angela Peacock was 18 years old, she dreamed of nothing more than joining the army and leaving her hometown of St. Louis to “start living life.”
“I wanted to travel the world, and serve my country, and gain life experience,” Peacock said.
Four years later, she was sexually assaulted by a fellow soldier while serving in South Korea. Despite the devastating emotional and physical aftereffects, Peacock decided to speak in public for the first time since her attack at the UCLA School of Law on Monday.
Sponsored by the National Women’s Law Student Organization and the Public Interest Law and Policy Program, the discussion titled “Fighting Sexual Assault in the Military: Angie’s Story” centered on the experiences of both Peacock and U.S. Navy veteran Maricela Guzman, another sexual assault survivor.
“With more women serving (in the military) than ever, we need to pay attention to their issues,” said Cari Simon, a member of the National Women’s Law Student Organization at UCLA.
After a 20-minute documentary about Peacock’s ordeal produced by the online magazine show “In Their Boots,” both women, in addition to sexual assault counselor Smita Satiani, answered questions from the audience.
Discussion commenced with the issue of current military policies for sexual assault cases.
One of these policies is a new program called SAPRO, which was implemented in 2006 and changed the reporting options for sexual assault survivors by allowing them to file a report and receive treatment without actually reporting the crime, Satiani said.
Prior to this act, she said, victims would have to go through the chain of command and report the assault to a commanding officer, thus spreading news of the attack.
Reporting the act to a superior officer would often be pointless, as it would not result in any action, Peacock said.
As a result, fewer women report sexual assault, Satiani said. Many women are also reluctant to report an assault due to its effect on their promotion possibilities, she added.
The speakers said that when being evaluated for a promotion in the military, medical records are taken into account. If there is anything on the record related to psychiatric visits or post-traumatic stress disorder, a soldier will most likely be withdrawn from consideration. Without this clearance, it is impossible to move upwards within the ranks.
Those who have been treated for post-traumatic stress disorder ““ which can after a sexual assault ““ or have visited a psychologist will lose the high-security clearance that they had previously attained, the women said during the panel.
“It’s like a mark on your record,” Guzman said. “Your military career ends with a post-traumatic stress disorder diagnosis.”
Guzman also said that training in sexual assault prevention is inadequate. She said that while some commanding officers discuss the issue, others choose not to, and it is simply a matter the officer’s personal preference.
She added that although every soldier receives this training, it is “a joke.”
“(The military) teaches honor, duty and service, but when it comes to (sexual assault), no,” Guzman said. “I learned in the service not to talk about those things.”
The women said the Department of Veterans Affairs was inefficient when it came to their sexual assault cases.
“It took me eight months to get a psychiatric appointment when I came back from Iraq,” Peacock said. “My whole life has been turned upside down, and all I get is one hour with the psychologist.”
Guzman added that there were so few therapists in the Veterans Affairs system that they could not keep up with the large amount of patients and could only spend a small amount of time with each one.
“What we need to question is who’s funding the (Veterans Affairs) system,” Guzman said. “It’s our representatives in Congress.”
These obstacles greatly hinder survivors’ recovery and healing processes, Peacock said.
“In one day, I went from excellent soldier to nothing,” she said. “Everything in my brain has changed.”
Despite the difficulties that she encountered as a result of her attack, including problems with alcohol and drug addiction, as well as numerous suicide attempts, Peacock said that she is starting to heal.
She said with the help of exercise like yoga and walking, as well as her involvement in the training of a service dog, she is learning to cope.
By speaking to the small crowd of 50 which gathered to hear her speak, Peacock said she hopes to bring attention to this issue.
“I’m mostly doing it to bring awareness because everything is so secretive and to help other people (to) have the courage to heal,” she said. “It happens more than they think, and there are things they can do as individuals.”
Peacock says that she is not yet finished telling her story.
She plans to speak at a Congressional hearing of the armed services committee under Representative Jane Harmon of California.
In addition, she is also working with Brave New Foundation, an organization that creates media for social justice, to arrange further media opportunities.
“I’m happy to help others with my experience ““ I’m not the only one,” Peacock said.
For other sexual assault survivors, Peacock urges them never to give up.
“Don’t stop until you get the help you need.”