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April is the Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) Month. The team of SAPR victim advocates (VAs) aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) began the month with a ceremony and cake cutting on the mess decks.
According to Navy Personnel Command, the mission of SAPR is to prevent and respond to sexual assault, eliminating it from the service though a balance of focused education, comprehensive response, compassionate advocacy and just adjudication in order to promote professionalism, respect and trust , while preserving Navy mission readiness.
The ceremony’s guest speaker was Bataan commanding officer Capt. Gregory Leland, who reminded the crew that every Sailor and Marine has a part to play in the SAPR program.
“Today and throughout the month of April, we will work to reinforce a simple message for a complex issue,” said Leland. “Preventing sexual assault is everyone’s responsibility. That responsibility requires a personal commitment to upholding our core values.”
Lt. Joshua Lawrence, the Bataan SAPR Program Coordinator, who spoke at the ceremony, said that living by the Navy and Marine Corps core values will drive Sailors and Marines to be good stewards of the SAPR program.
“I want you to know that we’re striving for a culture of bystander intervention,” said Lawrence. “That means that when you’re on the ship or out on liberty, you need to live by the values of honor, courage and commitment by treating our shipmates with the respect they have earned as humans. So if you see something that isn’t right, you need to have the moral courage to step in and stop a bad situation.”
Leland closed the ceremony by challenging everyone in attendance to buy into the program and build awareness among themselves and their peers.
“It is our mission to prevent and respond to sexual assault, promote professionalism, respect, and trust, while preserving operational readiness,” said Leland. “We must foster a culturally aware and informed Navy respectful of all, intolerant of sexual assault and supported by a program of prevention, advocacy, and accountability.”
| Date Taken: | 04.04.2020 |
| Date Posted: | 04.08.2020 12:25 |
| Story ID: | 366870 |
| Location: | ARABIAN GULF |
| Web Views: | 37 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Bataan Kicks Off SAPR Month, by CPO Zachary Anderson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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