1. The Invisible War Almost Instantly Changed Military Sexual Assault Legislation
Talk about an instant effect. The Invisible War written and directed by Kirby Dick and released in 2012 details the proliferation of sexual assault in the US military, specifically targeting its related cover-ups and injustices. Throughout the documentary there are various interviews with veterans across the different branches of the US military, who recount the struggles faced in the event of sexual assault, including the difficulty of achieving justice and the lack of emotional and physical care for survivors of attacks. Two days after the Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta watched the documentary, he ordered that all sexual assault cases were to be handled by senior officers as opposed to standard commanders. One of the great difficulties when it came to reporting sexual assault was that many commanders were responsible for attacks within their own units, or were close to the people committing the assaults, and so reports went nowhere. A massive problem faced by victims was essentially eradicated within two days of the documentary being seen by the right person. On top of that, the Marine Corps introduced new procedures to try and combat sexual assault several months later. Since then, the film has continued to vastly improve the situation. In 2013, President Obama signed a law that included various military improvements, and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand specifically credits the film as inspiring her to create new anti-sexual assault legislation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fBaFQk6aE0
