“Most female service members have a sharp tongue and are prepared to defend themselves from any such behavior…”
In the wake of the nude photograph scandal that saw explicit photos of female Marines and veterans shared in a secret Facebook group, Marine Lieutenant Colonel Ann Bernard created a group called Actionable Change. The goals of the group are to combat misogyny in the Marines and to fully integrate boot camp. The Marine Corps recruit training program separates males from females during boot camp, and according to Lt. Col. Bernard, this is where the culture of misogyny begins. She’s also encouraging other high ranking female Marines to speak out against misogyny and be the voice for those who are lower ranking and feel as though they cannot speak up or be heard.
The Marine Corps culture is pretty intense. Starting in the recruiting office, recruits are instilled with the idea that being a Marine is the greatest thing they will ever accomplish in life. I actually almost joined the Marine Corps myself before I chose the Army, and I remember a conversation I had with a female Marine who informed me that males in the Army compete with female Marines. She used that comparison to illustrate how “tough” I would be by joining the Marine Corps. She continued the conversation by stating, “People like to laugh and say that I think I’m god…I am God, I’m a Marine.”
As I recall the conversation today, it makes me laugh. However, at 20 years old, I thought that she was the coolest person there was. She carried herself with a level of confidence and self-assurance that I admired and wanted for myself. She was also a noncommissioned officer and not a Lieutenant Colonel.
While it’s important to acknowledge the valid concerns of Lt. Col. Bernard, it’s just as important to consider the culture down to the lowest levels of the enlisted. Female Marines possess just as much pride in who they are as the men. Sexual harassment and assault certainly does exist and should be fought at every level across every branch of the Armed Forces. However, creating a culture of victimization hurts morale and creates doubt and suspicion among female service members, causing them to begin to question the intentions of their male counterparts.
Even the media attention on the Facebook group could cause female service members to question the intentions of their male counterparts and hurt morale. Many male service members have argued that the photo sharing Facebook group was far less political than it has blown up to be. According to some, it was mostly a “boys will be boys” type of group where the mission was simply to look at nude photographs of women. Most of them believed it to be a harmless activity.
I think it’s important to train service members across the board on social media and media in general. Making sure that they also understand that sending content digitally can have serious unforeseeable ramifications and can never truly be 100% private is another key point. I wouldn’t recommend transmitting any digital content over communication platforms that a person wouldn’t want viewed publicly. There are so many other ways that this information can be accessed.
Personally, I have never encountered situations in my time on active duty where I felt threatened and devalued by my male counterparts based solely on my gender. Most female service members have a sharp tongue and are prepared to defend themselves from any such behavior. The nude photo group on Facebook is not a symbol of misogyny in the Marines or the Armed Forces, but rather an example of why all members of the Armed Forces should be taught to use social media responsibly.
