New Delhi:
In a shocking revelation, male crew members of US Navy submarine circulated sexually explicit lists that ranked female colleagues by their appearances, characteristics and various sexual acts the creators of the lists wish to perform with them, including "aggressive sexual activity." The lists, dubbed as “rape list”, were regularly updated and uncovered through a Freedom of Information Act request, according to Military.com website.
The 74-page investigative report stated that the two lists – one with star ratings on the women and another containing "lewd and sexist comments” – were discovered aboard the USS Florida submarine. USS Florida was the second submarine to integrate women.
"Rumors of a 'rape list' were promulgated throughout the crew, significant numbers of females became concerned for their safety, and male members who learned of the list were equally repulsed," Rear Adm. Jeff Jablon, then-commander of Submarine Group 10, wrote to his superior, according to the website.
Capt. Gregory Kercher, the Florida Gold crew's commanding officer, had directed a search of the submarine to locate the list and identify people who has access to it but didn’t open a formal investigation. He neither notified higher command about the lists.
In August last year, Kercher was for a loss of confidence in his ability to lead. After the lists came to the high command’s notice, two sailors assigned to the submarine were separated from the military while several others got administrative punishment.
"Although he took some action in response to the list, there is no question that those minimal actions fell far short of expected standards and norms for an event of this magnitude," Jablon wrote.
Reacting to the incident, US Submarine Forces commander Vice Admiral Chas Richard said that US Navy will enforce high standards of conduct in the force.
"While I cannot guarantee that an incident such as this will never happen again, I can guarantee that we will continue to enforce our high standards of conduct and character in the Force," the website quoted Richard as saying.
