Protecting Our Air Force Family

  • Published
  • By Col. Michael Grismer
  • 436th Airlift Wing
DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Del. --  Teammates,

Delivering excellence begins with establishing a climate where our people are valued and treated with the utmost in dignity and respect.  These same family values we learned from our parents and now instill in our own homes, remain essential to the health of our Air Force Family today.  Now more than ever, we must be deliberate in building a culture intolerant of sexual assault.  Additionally we must embolden survivors to report this crime, while we ensure they are cared for throughout the recovery process.   I request each of you take the following three items for action.

Establish a climate of dignity and respect: 
Everyone at Team Dover brings great value to our wing, and we have a commitment to treat everyone with the dignity, respect, and kindness all wingmen deserve.   Unprofessional behavior, even the perception of unprofessional behavior which could undermine a positive workplace climate, cannot be tolerated.   As military professionals, we must never forget the honor and privilege it is to wear our uniform and to be held to a higher standard.

Build a culture intolerant of sexual assault:  
All of us are change agents; breaking a chain of events can prevent an assault, safeguard a career, or save a life.  Remember, courage is valued in our business.  Each of us faces our own challenges to intervention, even when we know we should.  Possible obstacles to action include peer pressure, fear of retribution, fear of embarrassment, or uncertainty of a situation.   I challenge each of you to discuss these obstacles with your peers and to generate action plans.  Each of us has a responsibility to intercede if warning signs are detected.  This could be for an Airman without a Wingman, or a friend who is impaired by alcohol.  Additionally, if you witness or have knowledge of sexual assault, you have an obligation to immediately report it.  With 90% of all assaults committed by repeat offenders, unaccountable perpetrators will continue to prey until they are stopped.

Encourage survivors to report this crime: 
A survivor may not report an assault for a range of reasons to include fear of the perpetrator, public humiliation, fear of blame due to collateral misconduct, or finding fault in their own actions which led up to an assault.  Whether deployed, at home, or anywhere in between, we need to nurture an environment where these fears are assuaged and survivors have confidence in the response team and justice process.

Clearly, 99% of the Airmen in our Wing are doing the right thing, but we must work together to end these tragic crimes.  To the less than 1% who lack self-control, soberly consider all you risk--your career, future, family, and respect, as you hurt our Air Force Family members and undermine our mission.  As General Welsh, our Chief of Staff, has made very clear, "The number is zero.  That is the only acceptable goal."  I challenge each of you to never walk past this problem or any problem, because when you do, you set a new standard, and your people are watching.