PENNSYLVANIA, July 21 - in the military in recent decades; and

WHEREAS, In today's military, rape culture is an epidemic and

military sexual survivors are often forgotten; and

WHEREAS, Many military sexual assault survivors, prior to

being assaulted, had dreams of serving for 20 or more years in

the United States Armed Services and were happy in their

workplace; and

WHEREAS, While some military sexual assault survivors may

choose to stay in the military, the psychological impact of the

assault and resulting trauma can push survivors out of the

service and lead to tremendous difficulty readjusting to their

civilian lives; and

WHEREAS, Survivors of military sexual assault often decide

not to report the assault for the reasons of embarrassment, fear

and shame and professional and personal implications; and

WHEREAS, The military's culture of duty, teamwork, strength

and accomplishment conflicts with a military sexual assault

survivor's needs, resulting in them being stigmatized as weak or

failing their fellow service members; and

WHEREAS, The uniqueness of military life causes additional

anxiety to a sexual assault survivor and complicates the

survivor's life, which may result in lack of promotion or

removal from service; and

WHEREAS, United States Navy veterans Lauren DelRicci and

Timothy Jones, both from the Pittsburgh area, described their

sexual assault experiences in the military that resulted in

personal trauma, suffering and their military careers being cut

short; and

WHEREAS, Their personal stories underscore the need for

meaningful change to provide healing to those affected by

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