Canada’s military suffers ‘sexualized culture,’ report says
Women in uniform are subject to sexual jokes, harassment and assaults, damning report finds.
CANADIAN ARMED FORCES / CPL. SHAWN M. KENT
A report from a retired Supreme Court judge says there is an “undeniable link” between the “disrespectful and demeaning” work environment for women in the Canadian military and the poor integration of them into the organization.
OTTAWA—Canada’s women in uniform endure a toxic work environment, often the target of vulgar name-calling, sexual innuendoes and jokes, harassment and assault and much of it is condoned or ignored by senior military leaders, a damning new report concludes.
The Canadian Armed Forces is reeling after former Supreme Court justice Marie Deschamps found an “underlying sexualized culture” that is “hostile” to women as well as lesbian, gay, transgendered, bi-sexual and queer members of the military.
Military brass can champion “zero tolerance” of sexual harassment but Deschamps’ 88-page report released Thursday reveals they have failed to make that claim a reality.
“There is an undeniable problem of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the (Canadian Armed Forces), which requires direct and sustained action,” Deschamps wrote in her report.
And she said the military has refused to acknowledge the “extent and pervasiveness of the problem of inappropriate sexual misconduct.”
It took Deschamps only six months visiting bases and talking to military members — she sought the views of some 700 in all — to quickly learn the disturbing reality that confront many women in uniform: that the armed forces is rife with discrimination and that abuse toward women starts from their first days in uniform.
One military member told the review, “There is not a female who has not had a problem.”
Deschamps says many of the victims suffer the humiliation — and worse — in silence, choosing not to report harassment and assaults.
The solution is a sweeping change in the culture of Canada’s military and Deschamps called on commanders to step up.
“Senior leaders . . . need to acknowledge the problem of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the armed forces, clearly state that such misconduct is unacceptable,” Deschamps wrote.
She says there is an “undeniable link” between the “disrespectful and demeaning” work environment and the poor integration of women into the organization. As a result, she urges more appointments of women to senior leadership positions.
She calls for an independent process outside of the Canadian Armed Forces to take complaints of sexual misconduct, as well as lead prevention efforts, although the military appears cool to that suggestion.
Gen. Tom Lawson, the chief of defence staff, called the findings “disturbing” and blamed not only those who harass women but others who “idly stand by” and allow inappropriate conduct to happen unchallenged.
“The Canadian Armed Forces must take strong steps forward and initiative progressive change,” he said.
The military accepted only two of Deschamps’ 10 recommendations outright, saying the other eight needed further study. In particular, the military appeared cool to the idea of complaint process outside of the chain of command, even though the U.S., France and The Netherlands all have such a process in their militaries.
It has created a strategic task force, led by Maj.-Gen. Chris Whitecross, to evaluate how to put Deschamps’ recommendations into practice.
Lawson made plain that there would no quick fix, saying it would take a “sustained” effort to change attitudes.
“We’re not talking days and weeks but about months and years,” Lawson told reporters.
Deschamps found that the problems start in basic training, where inappropriate language by trainers goes unpunished and there are reports of “dubious” sexual encounters and date rape is “prevalent.”
Among non-commissioned officers, the use of language that belittles women is “commonplace.”
Women have been told to “stop being pussies” and “leave your purses at home” while graphic swear words and jokes about rape are tolerated, the report bluntly states.
But most men didn’t see such language as harassment with one telling the review, “girls that come to the army know what to expect.”
Deschamps says military leaders are blind to the poisonous culture, excusing inappropriate conduct on the basis that the armed forces is simply a “reflection of society.”
“There is a broadly held perception in the lower ranks that those in the chain of command either condone inappropriate sexual conduct, or are willing to turn a blind eye to such incidents,” the report says.
The problems exist even though concerns about inappropriate sexual conduct have been a focus within the forces for two decades and repeated studies on harassment.
Yet all that appears to be falling on deaf ears, the report suggests. The mandatory training that uniformed members undergo, including sessions on prohibited sexual conduct, has had little impact. The classes are “not taken seriously,” and harassment training is “laughed at.
“There is a common view that in many cases the trainers were themselves complicit in the prohibited conduct,” the report said.
Deschamps concluded that most incidents of sexual harassment and assault are not reported. Victims feared their careers would be harmed, that they not be believed or branded as a trouble-maker if they reported an incident. “Underlying all of these concerns is a deep mistrust that the chain of command will take such complaints seriously,” the report said.
Some of those who did report incidents called the entire experienced “atrocious.”
That’s because the investigation process is “overly long and burdensome” So-called “low-level” assaults and those that did not result in physical injury were often ignored.
The review was launched last summer in the wake of media reports of sexual harassment in the armed forces far beyond what the military’s own statistics would suggest.
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