THE IMPORTANCE OF ARMY SHARP PROGRAM IN USA PDF

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Describe the importance and challenges that American soldiers are facing in the army and how the Army Sharp program can solve them...

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Name Professor Course Date ARMY SHARP PROGRAM Introduction The Army SHARP program is an integrated initiative in the Army that is engaged in proactive effort of fighting and ending sexual assaults and sexual harassment incidents before they occur. SHARP stands for Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program (Skopp et al. 65). Sexual harassment is an act of sex discrimination that contains sexual advances that are unwelcomed and sexual favors requests. Also, it includes other physical or verbal conducts of sexual nature when submission to such conducts is done implicitly or explicitly a condition or term of an individual’s career, pay, or job. It may also include rejection or submission of such acts by an individual, is used as a basis for employment or career decision thus affecting the individual. Sexual Assault is an intentional sexual act that consist abuse of authority, intimidation, threats, or force or when the victim does not consent. The Army SHARP program should be adhered to prevent any form of sexual assaults. According to Los Angeles Times News of June 2021, the number of sexual assaults and rapes in US Army ranks is too high and this has raised an alarm to the Pentagon. Incidents of unwanted sexual contacts, rapes and sexual assaults were

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reported by 6290 service members in an annual Defense Department report that was released by May 2021(Cloud 1). It is a 1% increase more of the year 2020. The Pentagon explains that the actual number of the acts can be even three times higher of the recent estimate that is 20500 incidents in 2018. Since 2006 the estimated sexual assault and rape rate is at the highest level for women in the military (Cloud 1). From the statistic above, it is paramount for programs such as SHARP to stand tall and fight against these dehumanizing and unacceptable conducts. Every army personnel have a mandate to intervene and prevent sexual assaults and harassment. The SHARP program is championing to injecting a culture in the military where every soldier understand that failure to prevent sexual assaults or harassment is unacceptable by the Values and Warrior Ethos of the Army. Only 363 military personnel were charges with sexual related offences in the year 2019. Those who were convicted were only 138. Col. Don Christensen, president of a policy and legal assistance organization, and a retired Air Force prosecutor, states that although victims have been reporting at high rates, they have only suffered the price for reporting rather than their offenders being prosecuted (Cloud 1). It makes the victims to develop a state of fear, and that is dangerous. Therefore, the SHARP program has a duty to prevent the incompatible conducts in the army. Through the SHARP program, personnel such as certified Assault Response Coordinators (SARCs) Victim Advocates (VAs) have a responsibility of creating awareness efforts, training, prevention, support and reporting conducts that are categorized as sexual incompatible. The personnel provides a highly responsive sexual assault victim advocacy program. The services are available any time. The services are

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available in both the deployed and garrison environment. Therefore, the program expects a respectful and dignified climate will be installed in army environment. Other roles of SARC are; providing emotional and guidance support to sex assault victims during legal, investigative, medical, and administrative procedures. It will enable the victims to understand the processes involved ( Skopp et al. 67). Also, they assign the VA to the sexual assault Victims. The VA will assist the victims on advocacy services. The SHARP services will reduce if not eradicate the sexual assaults because the whole environment will be aware of the consequences. Conclusion Every military personnel should, either DA civilian or soldiers should take the responsibility of preventing sexual assaults. Supervisors, subordinates, and peers should not ignore, condone, or tolerate sexual harassment or any form of sexual assaults. They should have the personal courage of intervening, acting, and motivating others into taking action when it calls. Any event of sexual assaults should be immediately reported. If the Amy SHARP program will be consistently adhered to, then the army environment will be a safe place of no or little sexual assaults.

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Works Cited Cloud, David S.‘The scourge of sexual assault’: Push to change military prosecutions gains traction. Los Angeles Times News (2021). Available at : https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2021-06-24/military-sexual-assault-victimsface-hurdles-getting-justice

Skopp, Nancy A., et al. "Army Sexual Harassment/Sexual Assault Response & Prevention Program (SHARP) Tiger Team: A Model to Inform Prevention." Military Behavioral Health 8.1 (2020): 64-73....