Op-Ed: An Open Letter to Survivors of MST “I’m sorry that your movement was corrupted by civilians (Guillen Family).”
An Opinion Piece by Welsh Biographer Eleanor Wait
In 2022, The Military Sexual Trauma Movement published Boricua Gringa, the biography of Jánelle Marina Méndez Viera. That biographical book had been two years in the making. Just a couple of years ago, the civilian author had never even heard of Military Sexual Trauma (MST). She had been ignorant to the fact it had its own legal definition and how prevalent it is in the United States Marine Corps. As she began to learn more, the ugly face of patriarchal standards and white supremacy began to show itself. Horrified, she striked up a close professional relationship with the founder of The Military Sexual Trauma Movement.
Boricua Gringa focuses on Méndez’s trials and tribulations despite such adversity but there was part of the story that was left untold. I know, because I am the author.
I assisted Méndez with many of her advocacy and lobbying efforts during the height of Vanessa Guillen’s news coverage. My dedication to the cause was driven by fury on behalf and loyalty to a community which I was not really a part of. I was captivated by Méndez’s dedication to peaceful protest in the face of such holistility. During all of my efforts, I tried to keep that at the forefront of my mind. I have NEVER experienced MST.
Despite this, I would frequently feel jabbed at by some of the rhetoric I saw thrown around online by veterans. The idea that civilians should stay out of veterans issues just never sat right with me. Perhaps, it was my leaning towards the tree hugger, ‘let’s all hold hands and sing kumbaya’ world view, but I actually think it’s deeper than that.
As a woman with a sensory impairment, I often felt overlooked in the United States. I faced many accessibility barriers during my four years living in the Midwest and I would have adored fully-abled people to begin advocating on my behalf. I felt so small and powerless. Playing politics is hard enough and the idea of stepping into that sphere with a disability was nothing short of terrifying.
This meant that from my perspective, I couldn’t understand the hesitation of allowing civilians such as myself (particularly because I was a military spouse) into the MST Movement circle. I was under the impression that ‘The more the merrier’ was the most understanding and empathetic outlook.
This outlook was wrongfully confirmed by the 3.5% rule. The rule states that the involvement of 3.5% of a population will guarantee a movement’s success. At the time, I was wrapped up in this disproven idea and therefore convinced that just being a part of the 3.5% was an inherent act of allyship. When I stepped down from my position at the Military Sexual Trauma Movement, I did so for many reasons. Firstly, I was just tired: Politics is hard work and burnout is real. But secondly, after publishing the evidential biography, it was glaringly obvious that I had used up my skill set. The river of knowledge and experiences I had, which would prove a good outcome for MST survivors had dried up. Upon realising this, I took a huge step back because my worst fear was doing anything to prevent or delay progress.
When I heard veterans say that civilians should stay out of their issues, it irked me because I had chronically overlooked what is possibly the most important variable: The intention behind the civilians stepping into the advocacy sphere. It has become obvious to me that some civilians do not have pure intentions. They do not know when it is time to step back or how to stay in their lane. They do not value the voices of MST survivors, instead, they place the ability to profit from a survivor’s trauma above all else.
The overwhelming majority of survivors I came across were on the progressive left. This was in large part because they were mainly female Millennials and Gen Z in child-bearing years who had been disenfranchised chronically so early on in life. The challenges they face span well beyond their time enlisted. A survivor of MST is very likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder which causes unimaginable nerve damage in its most severe cases. This nerve damage manifests itself in both mental and physical ways including, chronic pain, insomnia, and fertility issues. For example, the rates of misccarriage are incredibly high in veteran survivors of MST.
It is also safe to say that whilst juggling such symptoms, much of the community lose their faith in the Christian God and religion because what divine being would cause so much suffering? These factors culminate in a community that is in large part: Pro-Choice and Pro-LGBTQIA. With all this taken into consideration, can you begin to see why I’m so frustrated in the (Guillen) family who are the most influential when it comes to ending MST because of their political conflation to Vanessa’s death?
Vanessa Guillen’s family stands in the front and centre of public consciousness when it comes to these issues. The death of their daughter has become synonymous with sexual violence in the Military even though, Vanessa did not die as a result of MST.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas, Cecily Aguilar pleaded guilty to one count of accessory to murder after the fact and three counts of making false statements. The tragic loss of life was not as a result of rape or retaliatory actions, but of an affair between Aaron Robinson & Cecily Aguilar.
We now have overwhelming evidence to back this up but the Guillen family and their lawyer have continued to profit off MST survivors. They are yet to set the record straight about the true nature of Vanessa’s passing. Not only am I unaware of the money they have raised going back into the community but from my perspective, they ignored them in more ways than one.
I was present at Congressional lobbying meetings where Jánelle Marina Méndez Viera and her many movement veteran-volunteers were working hard to ensure that transgender servicemembers were protected under the I Am Vanessa Guillen Act; the family encouraged religious vigils and even took a meeting with former disgraced President Donald Trump — the man who enforced the trans-ban.
This frustrated me at the time as it conflicted with the overwhelming views of the MST community that I had dedicated myself to. Seeing a family align themselves with anti-LGBTQIA representatives of the Republican Party was difficult for me but I believed that their intentions must be pure. At the end of the day, their daughter was murdered “because of MST” so they must want the best for survivors right? Wrong.
Just like I am, the Guillen family are just civilians, who are NOT survivors of MST. Just like I, they have NOT been personally affected or impacted by Military Sexual Trauma and the legal issues, social stigmas and problems, and healthcare illnesses that MST veterans struggle to manage. But unlike I, they have pushed and profited from an incorrect narrative with utter disregard to what MST Veterans need in order to reintegrate back into society and how their discourse and political affiliations are shaping the lives of survivors of MST in a harmful way.
I now fully understand why survivors would be so hesitant in allowing civilians to stand alongside them: it is because of reasons like this. The greed and insincerity of the civilian Guillen family is abhorrent and I am sorry that the fight for justice has been corrupted. I am disgusted that survivors of MST have been used as pawns in a political chess game by a former-President who also referred to veterans who died at war as ‘losers and suckers’. I am enraged that I cannot find evidence that the money raised off the back of military sexual trauma survivors has not been redistributed amongst the community or towards legislative efforts the MST Movement actually needs. I am sorry that the face of the MST Movement is a person who did not die from Military Sexual Trauma and that mistake lies in the hands of civilians.
I call for the Guillen family to set the record straight. I am in full support of the group of MST veterans calling for the Guillen family to step away from MST advocacy. The MST Movement, a progressive feminist veteran movement was wrongfully hijacked by Republican civilians. The Guillen Family needs to give your platform back to all of you and walk away. It’s the least this family can do to demonstrate allyship and genuine care for the MST community.
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