DETROIT – Every year thousands of military personnel are sexually assaulted while serving our country, and 85 percent of the time, the attacks go unreported.
A Metro Detroit Navy veteran spoke to Local 4 Defender Kevin Dietz about military sexual trauma. He shared his personal story about being attacked while at sea so that other victims know they're not alone and help is available.
Robert Calhoun said it was his dream to join the military, so he chose the Navy, put on the uniform and set off to see the world.
"It was a great feeling, you know, when I took that oath," Calhoun said. "I felt very proud."
But one night on the ship, decades ago, Calhoun said he saw something he wasn't supposed to.
"When I ran down the gangway, which was the steps and the stairs of the ship, I walked up on two senior guys," Calhoun said. "One was giving the other one oral sex."
Calhoun walked away from the encounter shaken, never planning to tell a soul. Then, one night, he was walking alone when he was grabbed.
"One of them grabbed me, pulled me in and they took turns," Calhoun said.
He said he was raped and ridiculed.
"The second one urinated on my back," Calhoun said.
He was far away from home and wasn't sure what to do.
"They told me that if I say anything that they would throw me overboard," Calhoun said. "I must have showered for about three or four hours."
Calhoun decided not to report the incident, instead burying it emotionally. When he returned home, he burned everything he owned that reminded him of the Navy and what happened to him.
"It was a lot of anger," Calhoun said. "I hated the Navy. I hated the VA."
It was eating him alive, and he started drinking.
"Those demons had those shackles around me," Calhoun said. "I've been delivered from the shackles now."
Calhoun said he went to the John Dingell VA in Detroit and told them everything. He received counseling and therapy, which worked wonders.
"I talk about it today because it's therapeutic," Calhoun said. "I'm not ashamed. I can stand tall in adversity and talk about it."
Now he helps others who had similar experiences.
"Women and men would grab me, 'Man, that happened to me. I was going to take it to my grave,'" Calhoun said.
Dr. Gerald Shiener said historically, rape in the military is underreported.
"If you tell someone what happened, you get blamed," Shiener said. "You're a snitch. People humiliate you. People make fun of you, and usually the perpetrators don't get any consequences."
But today, improved systems are in place for victims to file complaints.
"There's a zero tolerance for abuse," Shiener said. "There's zero tolerance for racism, whether it's just on paper or if it's real. It takes time to implement these things. It's better than it was in 1970."
Calhoun said he's on the mend, helping others by sharing his story and offering support to many military men and women.
"I know what my purpose is," Calhoun said. "It's to reach down and to pull somebody else back up, to help somebody."
Calhoun said if he hadn't sought professional help from the VA, he would never be in a position to help others.