Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Alonzo Martin-Frazier | PHILIPPINE SEA (April 10, 2022) Lt. j.g. Viviana Lozano, left, from San Diego, and...... read more read more
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PHILIPPINE SEA (April 11, 2022) The Sexual Assault Prevention and Response (SAPR) squad held a special observance ceremony for Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month (SAAPM) aboard the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) April 10.
The ceremony kicked off a month-long campaign designed to inform Sailors of the resources they have available to them, such as access to a command Chaplain, a deployed resiliency counselor and other mental health services, and create a strong relationship between the crew and Mobile Bay’s SAPR Victim Advocates (VAs).
In their presentation to the crew, the SAPR VAs introduced the shipboard theme for April 2022’s SAAPM, self-reflection, re-emphasized their vows to serve the community and called for Sailors aboard to analyze their own behavior and its potential consequences. The event culminated in a cake cutting with the commanding officer, a special meal served by SAPR VAs and crew volunteers dedicated to stomping out sexual assault and the behaviors that predicate it.
“So, often we ask Sailors to ‘see something, say something,’” said Electrician’s Mate 1st class Teresa Ruiz, the Administrative SAPR VA aboard Mobile Bay. “This time we wanted people to look inward and recognize how their own behaviors could be unintentionally contributing to these complex issues or creating obstacles in the SAPR program process.”
The SAPR VAs specifically addressed the ‘continuum of harm’ for sexual assault, which analyzes how a healthy working environment is characterized and what actions may insight instances of sexual harassment or assault in a workplace. According to SAPR.MIL, a work environment that tolerates actions such as gender-focused jokes and sexual comments can become a work environment that lets instances of threats and sexual bribery occur, which in turn can lead to incidents of sexual assault. Because of this, it is a key strategy of the SAPR squad to identify high-risk behaviors and stop them before it’s too late.
“We didn’t just ask our fellow Sailors to look into themselves, we also held ourselves accountable and reflected upon how we could be better SAPR VAs alongside our peers,” Ruiz said. “One of the first cases I ever took, I was an advocate for someone who was unable to seek care for over a year because they weren’t comfortable with the VAs they knew at the time. I don’t want anyone to miss out on critical care they could receive immediately, because they either don’t know or aren’t comfortable with all the members of the SAPR VA team aboard or the SAPR process.”
The SAPR VAs aboard Mobile Bay undergo an extensive interviewing process with members of the entire chain-of-command, pre-existing SAPR VAs and a Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC) before they begin the process of becoming a victim advocate. After receiving written recommendations, a certification, a designation letter from the commanding officer and attending a 40-hour SAPR VA training, a SAPR VA is then authorized to provide victim advocacy services aboard Mobile Bay for Sailors.
Ruiz emphasized that all Sailors should reflect and ensure they are doing their part to serve the community as peers and mentors.
“It can be tough to recognize problems with one’s own behavior, which is why speaking out about these things is very important,” Ruiz said. “But depending on circumstances, victims of either sexual harassment or sexual assault could value their relationship with a perpetrator too much to share how the behaviors, large or small, are truly impacting them. That’s why everyone needs to start by looking at themselves. The solution starts with us.”
The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is on a scheduled deployment in the 7th Fleet area of operations to enhance interoperability through alliances and partnerships while serving as a ready-response force in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
| Date Taken: | 04.11.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 05.10.2022 10:49 |
| Story ID: | 420344 |
| Location: | PHILIPPINE SEA |
| Web Views: | 44 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, MOB’s SAPR SQUAD holds Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month Observance, by PO2 Alonzo Martin-Frazier, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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