Team Hill urged to 'Step Up to Stop Sexual Assault'

  • Published
  • Hill AFB Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah --  This year as we head into Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), we are being told to "Live Our Values: Step Up to Stop Sexual Assault." This statement implies that we already hold the tools we need in our Air Force Core Values to stop the violence and tragedy of a sexual assault. From day one we were taught our own cultural, familial and societal values. When we joined the Air Force we were asked to take on even more defining values, all of which shape who we are as individuals and as an organization. The point is, we know, by rote, what it means to have good values. The question is, do we know how to uphold those values?

The inherent issue in having a set standard of behaviors and values is how to enforce them. A drill sergeant can yell at a trainee to shine their shoes until they are blue in the face, but that sergeant is going to have to keep yelling until the day the trainee makes that action a personal responsibility. The SAPR office, likewise, can hold training after training, brief each wave of newcomers, but change isn't going to happen until Airmen at all levels decide to take responsibility for defending and protecting their fellow Airmen against sexual assault, while in turn isolating perpetrators until they have no choice but to get out. Take the values you know and live them.

Integrity First, Service Before Self and Excellence in All We Do. Have the integrity to make sexual assault a problem you won't tolerate. Begin in the workplace by standing up to those that make inappropriate comments or jokes. Serve your wingmen by being brave and refuse to be a passive bystander to dangerous situations and perpetrator dynamics. We cannot attain excellence in all we do when sexual assault is in our midst.

This year's SAAM is all about enabling you to reach this vision. Learn more about sexual assaults and perpetrators at the following events.
  • April 1, 07:30 a.m. A 5K run and 1 mile Silent March will begin at the Warrior Fitness Center track. The course will round the base's duck ponds, where participants will see signage on sexual assault myths and statistics. The event is free and open to the base populace.
  • April 9, 7:30 a.m. A self-defense course will be held at The Bubble located behind the Warrior Fitness Center. The course will focus on escape strategies. The event is free and open to the base populace.
  • April 10, 9 a.m., noon and 3 p.m. A Sex Signals presentation will be held at the Base Theater. The presentation will focus on male and female communication, dating, intimacy, as well as sexual assault, resources, prevention and bystander intervention. The event is free and open to the base populace.
  • April 12, 10 a.m. Your Community Connection will hold a Walk Against Sexual Assault to bring awareness to sexual abuse and domestic violence. The event will be held at Pioneer Park located at 1650 Jefferson Ave. in Ogden. The event is free.
  • April 17, 11:30 a.m. A Sexual Assault Awareness Month luncheon will be held at The Landing. The event is open to the base populace. Cost is $13 per person; however, limited space is available. Call the SAPR office to register for the event.
  • April 22, 4 p.m. A self-defense course will be held at the Warrior Fitness Center aerobics room. The course will focus on escape strategies. The event is free and open to the base populace.
  • April 25, 9 a.m. The Hill AFB Airmen Against Sexual Assault and the Davis Sexual Assault Response Team are hosting a golf tournament at the Hill AFB golf course. Cost is $70 per person. Prizes for top performers will be awarded. Call the SAPR office to register for the event.
For more information or to sign up for an event, contact the Sexual Assault Response Coordinator (SARC), Janaee Stone, or the Deputy SARC, 2d Lt. Dené McCracken, at 801-777-1964/1985.