Stand up for Vanessa Guillén and Military Survivors
Tell Congress
To investigate and conduct a hearing into Fort Hood’s handling of Vanessa Guillén's disappearance and death, and to give her family answers and full disclosure.
Why is this important?
The last time 20-year-old Army Specialist Vanessa Guillén was seen alive was on April 22 at the parking lot of her barracks in Fort Hood, Texas. Tragically, on Tuesday, June 30, some of her remains were found in a shallow grave near Fort Hood. A suspect in her murder, who was approached by police two days later, committed suicide.1
Prior to Vanessa's disappearance, she had told her mother that a sergeant was sexually harassing her at work, but that she was afraid to report the abuse out of fear of retaliation. Sexual harassment and assault is rampant and systemic in the U.S. armed forces with complaints filed by 13,000 active duty women in 2018.2 However, experts say that only one in 10 survivors reports their assault, therefore, this number is probably much higher. And considering that survivors have little recourse outside of the military's infrastructure, the fear of retaliation for reporting sexual abuse is widespread as well.3
The Army failed to protect Vanessa, as well as countless other women on the job, and must be held accountable through an outside investigation and hearing of her disappearance and murder.
Sign the petition to demand a congressional investigation and hearing into Fort Hood's handling of Vanessa's disappearance and death. Her family deserves answers and full disclosure.
Sources:
1. Vanessa Guillén's killing at Fort Hood leaves family grieving, grasping for clues, USA Today, July 17, 2020
2. Department of Defense Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military Fiscal Year 2018, U.S. Department of Defense, accessed July 20, 2020
3. Challenging Military Sexual Violence, Military Law Task Force of the National Lawyers Guild, accessed July 20, 2020