VA Boston Healthcare System
The Clothesline Project helps raise awareness of Military Sexual Trauma
Tee shirts hang from a rack
Each year, in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness month in April, VA Boston Healthcare System hosts a Clothesline Project at the Jamaica Plain and Brockton campuses. The Clothesline Project is a visual display that raises awareness about sexual assault and sexual harassment that occurred while a veteran was in the military. The Department of Veterans Affairs refers to this type of sexual trauma as Military Sexual Trauma (MST). To ‘break the silence’ that can often surround these experiences, male and female veterans are invited to design shirts that reflect their experience of MST or other sexual trauma. Designing a shirt allows veterans to speak up about experiences they may have previously kept silent. Completed shirts are hung side-by-side to bear witness to the impact sexual violence has had on their lives.
Why host the Clothesline Project? The Department of Veterans Affairs is concerned about sexual violence because we know that any type of trauma can have lasting effects on a person’s physical and mental health. We also know that people can recover from trauma.
About 1 in 5 women and 1 in 100 men have told their VA healthcare provider that they experienced MST. Although rates of MST are higher among women, there are actually comparable numbers of men and women seen in VA who experienced MST, due to the greater number of men in the military. MST can have long-term effects on a survivor's mental and physical health but recovery is possible.
VA has free services available to help veterans recover from the effects of MST. Veterans do not need to be service connected (have a VA disability rating) and may be able to receive this benefit even if they are not eligible for other VA care. Veterans do not need to have reported the incident when it happened or have other documentation that it occurred. To learn more, please contact Sofia Reddy, LICSW, MST Coordinator for VA Boston Healthcare System at (774) 826-1303.
We invite you to mark your calendars for VA Boston's next Clothesline Project to be held April 26-28, 2011. Event details will be announced well in advance.
