HOUSTON – The city of Houston held an event on Saturday on Vanessa Guillen Day to raise awareness about military sexual assault.
Sept. 30 is also Guillen’s birthday. In 2023, Texas lawmakers passed legislation that established this date as Guillen’s day to honor her memory.
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The woman was a 20-year-old Texas soldier who was sexually harassed and killed at Fort Hood.
The event on Saturday was organized by the City of Houston Mayor’s Office of Military and Veteran Affairs and it allowed service members and veterans to come together, discuss military sexual trauma and sexual harassment, and heal together.
“When someone comes forward to say that they have been harassed by their brothers in arm, that someone does something and it’s not 15, 20 years later when they’re reliving the whole memory and wishing that they would have said something. But, they know that they didn’t say anything because nobody was going to do anything about it. We want women to be able to come forward, those active-duty women that are serving now to come forward if something is happening to them,” said LaShondra C. Jones with the city of Houston.
There were several breakout sessions, a balloon release, and more.
For more information on how to get help if you are a victim of sexual harassment or sexual assault, click here.
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