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The Pentagon announced in March that sexual assaults reported by US military personnel against fellow troops rose in Iraq and Afghanistan by nearly 25% last year. It also estimated that only between 10 and 20 percent of people who were sexually assaulted actually report the crime. According to the BBC, Dr. Kaye Whitley, director of the Pentagon’s Sexual Assault and Prevention Office, said, “given the fear and stigma associated with the crime, sexual assault remains one of our nation’s most under-reported crimes in both the military and civilian community.” In a startling look into the lives of women soldiers, Helen Benedict’s latest book entitled, “The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq,” exposes how, many women in the military are forced to wage a second war in secret, “against an enemy dressed in the same uniform.” The book includes stories from over 40 soldiers and veterans about their experiences in Iraq and how despite the risks women take in the battlefield, they also live in fear of sexual assault by the same people that they serve alongside and are supposed to protect them.

GUEST: Helen Benedict, author of “The Lonely Soldier: The Private War of Women Serving in Iraq,” Maricela Guzman, US Navy Veteran, organizer with the American Friends Service Committee

Helen Benedict will be speaking on April 6th from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at the American Friends Service Committee, 634 S. Spring St., Ground Floor Conference Room in Los Angeles. For more information, call (213) 489-1900.