{"id":11864,"date":"2023-05-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-05-22T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=11864"},"modified":"2023-05-23T06:48:47","modified_gmt":"2023-05-23T06:48:47","slug":"usa-nato-hosts-events-in-three-countries-to-combat-sexual-assault-harassment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=11864","title":{"rendered":"USA NATO hosts events in three countries to combat sexual assault, harassment"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Staff Sgt. Audrianna Overton-Peterson (left) and Lt. Col. Bonnie Kovatch celebrate a victory in the tug-of-war contest during the Allied Forces North Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month Stand-Down Day. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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\n David Woods Bartley gives a presentation on suicide prevention, sexual trauma and mental illness during U.S. Army NATO\u2019s Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month activities. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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\n Col. Troy V. Alexander and Command Sgt. Maj. Kisha M. Thomas, command team for U.S. Army NATO, sign a Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month proclamation reaffirming their commitment to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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\n Master Sgt. Ashley Pena, Joint Forces Command \u2013 Naples, gives a class on Sexual Harassment\/Assault Response and Prevention with the assistance of Staff Sgt. Donavin Castro, Allied Forces South Battalion, during Regulator Week in Naples, Italy. Dozens of U.S. Soldiers assigned to NATO units in Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Romania and Spain participated in the week-long event to get up to date on Army training, medical and administrative requirements.
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\n Sgt. 1st Class Joshua White and Staff Sgt. Kendra McCloud go for the disk ina game of ultimate during the Allied Forces North Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month Stand-Down Day. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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\n U.S. Army NATO produced a series of posters to inspire and motivate Soldiers to learn more about Denim Day. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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\n Soldiers assigned to Allied Forces North struggle to hold the line during the tug-of-war contest at the Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month Stand-Down Day. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.
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SEMBACH, Germany — Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series of events to reinforce the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Army Team to prevent sexual assault and sexual harassment.<\/p>\n

U.S. Army NATO units launched the activities in Belgium, Germany, and Italy with proclamation signing ceremonies reaffirming their commitment.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s activities included Denim Day and the production of posters to encourage participation, presentations by storyteller and mental health advocate David Woods Bartley in Germany, presentations during Regulator Week at Allied Forces South Battalion in Italy, and a Stand-Down Day with a variety of activities at Allied Forces North Battalion in Belgium.<\/p>\n

Denim Day was held at the brigade, both battalions and many of the out stations on April 26. Sgt. 1st Class Brandy Jackson-Frazer, the brigade Sexual Assault Response Coordinator, organized a professional photographer, Olen Kelley III, for a photo shoot with the brigade commander, command sergeant major and chief of staff, to produce posters encouraging participation in the Denim Day events across the European theater.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe brought in a professional photographer to craft something new, motivating and impactful to our Soldiers and their families using familiar faces,\u201d said Jackson-Frazer. \u201cThe photos were used to inspire and motivate our organization to learn more about Denim Day, participate in prevention related activities, and serve as the faces of U.S. Army NATO on the Denim Day posters.\u201d<\/p>\n

At U.S. Army NATO headquarters in Sembach, David Woods Bartley shared his story \u201cfrom mental hellness to mental wellness\u201d with Soldiers and civilian employees during two presentations.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo the great men and women, the Soldiers of the army, if I had one message in regard to this monster, this thing called suicide, is that connection creates hope,\u201d said Bartley. \u201cAnd please don’t underestimate the power of hope.<\/p>\n

\u201cHope is a weapon. It is the single most important weapon that there is, and it only comes by way of connection.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can’t give ourselves hope, and connection is when we feel seen, heard and valued.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeverage that unit cohesion, the individuality of battle buddies coming together. You will create hope. \u201c<\/p>\n

Allied Forces North in Belgium went all out on Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month partnering with American Forces Network Benelux, the U.S. Army Garrison Benelux, the Exchange, and the SHAPE International Band on a series of events culminating in a Stand-Down Day of group discussions and activities on April 28.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’ve been planning this event for months,\u201d said Staff Sgt. Gina Marasco, Allied Forces North Battalion S3. \u201cThe SHARP (Sexual Harassment\/Assault Response and Prevention) Program is important to Soldiers\u2019 well-being because it provides a support system embedded throughout the army. From victim advocates to SARCs, commanders and legal teams the SHARP program ensures victims, whether civilian or military, are taken care of, always.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Allied Forces North Stand Down Day included group discussions with subject matter experts on a variety of topics and also included games and activities with further discussion in the morning.<\/p>\n

Following a break for lunch, participants reassembled for an afternoon of sporting events with the intent to promote esprit de corps and encourage a culture of change within the force.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny personnel loss diminishes the readiness of an organization and immediately impacts mission accomplishment,\u201d said Lt. Col. Bonnie Kovatch, AFNorth commander. \u201cBut sexual harassment and sexual assault erode trust which diminishes organizational effectiveness long before any physical loss of a Soldier.<\/p>\n

\u201cSexual harassment and sexual assault destroy army readiness, and that behavior runs counter to our army values and warrior ethos ultimately eroding the trust between the military and those whom we serve to protect.<\/p>\n

\u201cInvestment in prevention and in command programs such as SHARP are important to our efforts at trust building.\u201d<\/p>\n

The highlight of the AFNorth Stand-Down Day came at the end of the day in the form of a performance by the SHAPE International Band that included a song, \u201cI\u2019m Strong Enough,\u201d about prevention of sexual harassment and assault written by band member Sgt. 1st Class Miguel Davis.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt music is so powerful,\u201d said Davis. \u201cMusic crosses so many sectors, so many languages, but one thing is very, very unique in that music is understood in every language.<\/p>\n

Davis said his intent was to create a song that drew the listener in so he could use that as a launching point for delivering the critical messages of the SHARP program during SAAPM month.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think about the journey of a victim, you know it’s a long process,\u201d he said. \u201cIt’s a slow process in some cases, and we really have to go at their pace.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut really what we want to see is at the end for them to take that power back into their own hands saying I am strong enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson-Frazer said the Army\u2019s focus for Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month is \u201censuring healthy climates and creating a culture focused on prevention that stops sexual harassment and sexual assault before it occurs.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be accomplished by understanding and targeting the underlying Army cultural issues that have contributed to the high rates of sexual harassment and sexual assault,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The mission of U.S. Army NATO is to provide ready and resilient Soldiers to the NATO alliance by ensuring U.S. Army Soldiers and their families assigned to NATO billets receive the support they need to thrive in a variety of environments at 82 locations in 22 countries.<\/p>\n

For more information go to the USA NATO Home Page<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

1 \/ 7 Show Caption + Hide Caption \u2013 Staff Sgt. Audrianna Overton-Peterson (left) and Lt. Col. Bonnie Kovatch celebrate a victory in the tug-of-war contest during the Allied Forces North Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month Stand-Down Day. Every year in April during Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, Army units host a series […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11866,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11864","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11864","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=11864"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11864\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11874,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11864\/revisions\/11874"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/11866"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=11864"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=11864"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=11864"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}