Eagle Brigade wraps up Mini-Clothesline Project

Photo By Staff Sgt. Ryan Rayno | Staff Sgt. Ronica Pennington, an observer coach/trainer with 1st Brigade Engineer Battalion, 310th Infantry Regiment, 181st Multifunctional Training Brigade, describes how to participate in the Fort McCoy mini-clothesline project, March 8, 2021, at Fort McCoy, Wis. Pennington first created the project in 2019. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Ryan Rayno)  

FORT MCCOY, WI, UNITED STATES

05.03.2021

Story by Staff Sgt. Ryan Rayno 

181st Multifunctional Training Brigade

Eagle Brigade wraps up Mini-Clothesline Project
By Staff Sgt. Ryan Rayno, 181st Multifunctional Training Brigade

The 181st Multifunctional Training Brigade ended a successful Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month with the conclusion of the mini-clothesline project throughout April 2021 on Fort McCoy, Wis.

The mini-clothesline project on Fort McCoy was introduced by Staff Sgt. Ronica Pennington, an observer coach/trainer with 1st Brigade Engineer Battalion, 310th Infantry Regiment, 181st Multifunctional Training Brigade.

“After becoming a Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention victim advocate, I was overwhelmed with the statistics and just how many people are survivors of sexual trauma,” Pennington said. “I learned about the original clothesline project and wanted to show the same kind of visual representation.”

According to the Clothesline Project website, “The first Clothesline Project originated in Hyannis, Massachusetts, in 1990 when a member of the Cape Cod's Women's Defense Agenda learned that during the same time 58,000 soldiers were killed in the Vietnam War, 51,000 U.S. women were killed by the men who claimed to love them.”

The Clothesline Project typically displays full shirts of various colors that represent the different kinds of survivors of sexual assault, such as yellow for survivors of domestic violence, or green and blue for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

Here on Fort McCoy, the project was miniaturized to just strips of clothing of the different colors.

“Most people want to show support and honor survivors but sometimes can struggle to find appropriate ways to do so,” Pennington said. “The visual representation of support is the main objective for this project, but shrinking down the project allowed for multiple stations to be setup around the busiest places of Fort McCoy.”

Stations were established at the Eagle Brigade headquarters, the 88th Readiness Division headquarters, at The McCoy’s Community Center, the Wisconsin Military Academy and the Fort McCoy Post Exchange.

With April not just being SAAPM nationally, but also a time for the Army to highlight the SHARP program, Pennington believes that the mini-clothesline project on Fort McCoy helped raise awareness for victims of sexual assault and harassment.

“It is extremely important for communities to be aware of sexual trauma survivors and for those survivors to know they have support within their community,” she said. “If only one person felt heard and supported from this project, then it was a success.”

Pennington brings the mini-clothesline project to Fort McCoy from her time while stationed in South Korea nearly three years ago.

“I first thought of the mini-clothesline project while brainstorming for SAAPM 2019 at Camp Carroll and Pier 8,” she said. “The program was a success and it has expanded since. Now in 2021, the mini-clothesline project is still being conducted at the 501st Military Intelligence Brigade in Korea, and now here at Fort McCoy.”

To learn more about The Clothesline Project, visit http://www.clotheslineproject.info/index.html.

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• Date Taken: 05.03.2021
• Date Posted: 05.06.2021 14:11
• Story ID: 395833
• Location: FORT MCCOY, WI, US