Latest / Military Broadcast Radio | MBR Talk / The Gunslingers Tavern -Sexual Assaults and the true Affects
Transcript
- 0:15Try to listen to me. You're keeping us.
- 0:21Alive. Now you can forget about that
- 0:22one and you keep them coming in. You're doing well, son.
- 0:23Find us on the web at MB radio dot.
- 0:24US want to make it clear that the views expressed by our hosts
- 0:27are not considered the official stance of MBR views.
- 0:31Remember, this is all about having fun and enjoying the
- 0:33ride. Welcome to Gunslingers Tavern.
- 0:42I'm Audrey McHugh. I'm a bisexual open woman that
- 0:46served in the military brown water Navy.
- 0:49Shout out to my Airedales One in three veterans experience
- 0:53military sexual. Trauma.
- 0:55Here we use whiskey. For good and talk about all
- 0:58different events that affect veterans and how we can do
- 1:01better to make sure that no one has to release their burden of
- 1:04rape at these gates anymore and ensure that veterans lives are
- 1:09advocated and lived for. Hey guys, it's Audrey with you,
- 1:17with gunslingers, Taverns slinging you some perspective
- 1:22today along with some good dreams.
- 1:25But. I wanted to talk to you today.
- 1:28About what it. Takes to deal with being
- 1:32sexually assaulted or raped in the military, or just dealing
- 1:36with that in general. So today I went to the gym.
- 1:42And I went to the gym on base. It was great.
- 1:48It was very difficult for me. To actually walk into a gym
- 1:53after being sexually assaulted and sexually harassed,
- 1:57especially being assaulted by your.
- 2:01Own. Right.
- 2:03That betrayal is. So devastating I don't.
- 2:08Know how to say that when somebody's supposed.
- 2:12To be your brother and protect you.
- 2:15And they decide to do something like that.
- 2:17How much it impacts your life? So just.
- 2:22Going to the gym today on base and working out and it wasn't
- 2:27like. A huge.
- 2:28Workout It was just like a start to something better and I was
- 2:35triggered. I had a.
- 2:36Flashback of. One of the sexual.
- 2:40Assaults. At the gym and I was refusing to
- 2:46give in. So I'm very proud.
- 2:49Of myself today, honestly, I, you know, said fuck you, PTSD.
- 2:56Like I went to the gym. Anyway, and I didn't.
- 3:00Do anything spectacular but just me being there.
- 3:05And not leaving the gym and saying I have the right to be
- 3:10here just as much as anyone else was a victory like a true
- 3:15victory for me. And I can't wait to go back.
- 3:18I can't wait to keep going on base and.
- 3:23Working. Out and enjoying myself and
- 3:26getting back to the person that was an athlete before she was
- 3:32raped and sexually assaulted in the Navy.
- 3:34And I think I have every right to want that person and this
- 3:39elevatedness that comes along with going through this
- 3:42experience too. Those are some of the things I
- 3:46don't even think people think. Of that when?
- 3:49You're raped. Or sexually assaulted people are
- 3:53just like that's. Horrible.
- 3:55I'm sorry that. Happened to you?
- 3:57But it really takes so much work to get through what somebody
- 4:02else did to you and their choice to.
- 4:06Destroy your happiness because. Of their lust and really their
- 4:13need to have power. And control over someone at the.
- 4:18Expense of someone else. 'S happiness?
- 4:21And I think that I'm never going to forgive those people and I
- 4:27don't have to be asked. To forgive those people, and
- 4:32I'm. Happy.
- 4:33For other people that feel it's necessary to do that in their
- 4:37healing process, but I'm never forgiving those people.
- 4:40Ever. Ever.
- 4:43And I'm going to do. Everything in my power to keep
- 4:46people. Held accountable for those.
- 4:48Kind of. Actions because it shouldn't
- 4:51take me 20 years plus to feel safe to go.
- 4:58Back on a base again. Like ever.
- 5:03It shouldn't take me over 20 years to feel like it's OK to
- 5:10work out. With my shipmates.
- 5:13I should have felt that. Over 20 years ago.
- 5:17I should have felt safe. Then.
- 5:19And I had a. Flashback I was triggered.
- 5:24I mean triggered by. Like I was looking around and
- 5:27being like, well, how many people are in here and who could
- 5:29be potential threats? And you know, am I going to be
- 5:33safe here instead of just like, hey, I'm just going to the the
- 5:37gym today and this is another day and what's my workout going
- 5:41to be? I can't really focus.
- 5:43Like that yet, And I'm really looking forward to when I can,
- 5:48but today was. I got there.
- 5:51I didn't leave. I didn't have a panic attack.
- 5:54The triggers came in to. Give me those panic attacks and
- 5:58I. Beat that.
- 5:59I beat that. So I really enjoyed being there.
- 6:06It made me feel good to be back into my my community.
- 6:10I. Served my country.
- 6:11I have every right to be there and yeah.
- 6:17So I don't think people think about that.
- 6:20It took me over 20 years to get back in the ocean after being
- 6:25raped on the. Beach outside of my apartment.
- 6:29And I loved the ocean, and it took everything for me to.
- 6:34Start surfing again. And I don't think people
- 6:38understand that. And I'm.
- 6:42Happy for myself. I don't think I really talk
- 6:45about. Me.
- 6:47Very often I talk about how much I'm going to help other people.
- 6:50Which I do, I help people get through the same.
- 6:54Things that I'm going through. But there are days where I don't
- 6:58want to take a. Shower.
- 6:59There are days when just taking a shower triggers me.
- 7:04There are days where I look like a bum because I one.
- 7:09I just don't care. And two, I just don't.
- 7:13Feel like it I. Don't feel like.
- 7:16Going through the process and dealing with shit so there are
- 7:20days. Where I should be?
- 7:23More attentive and trying to be on track, and I can't do it
- 7:27because PTSD is playing its game.
- 7:32But. I would say that if I look at
- 7:37just my video. Where?
- 7:39I'm at the gates of a place where I was raped at and I'm
- 7:44dropping. A rock off.
- 7:47And that's, I would say two years, almost two years now, and
- 7:52I'm releasing that burden and that woman is crying
- 7:56hysterically. At that.
- 7:58Gate because she's remembering everything.
- 8:03I'm nowhere near her. I'm.
- 8:05Such a different person from when that happened when I
- 8:09released that I have. Gone through edmr I've.
- 8:16Gone through exposure. Therapy.
- 8:19I kind of did a lot of exposure therapy myself, so I just
- 8:23decided to go to awesome nightclubs.
- 8:29In some pretty dope places. Like New Jersey shut out, This
- 8:33New Yorker loves the Jersey Shore and.
- 8:38Yeah. I was like, OK, I got sexually
- 8:41assaulted in a nightclub and I have to be able to, like, dance
- 8:47and enjoy myself while I'm having flashbacks.
- 8:49And I did that and I got through it, and now I can go dance and I
- 8:53don't even fuck if y'all like how I dance or not at all.
- 8:56Let me just make sure y'all know 'cause it's a silly thing you
- 9:01don't like. Me, I don't care.
- 9:03They don't like us. We don't care.
- 9:06Like we're not gonna give you our energy.
- 9:08So. So I'm gonna go.
- 9:11Have fun. Dance my little heart.
- 9:14Away. Not give a fuck.
- 9:16If people like it or not, and that's wonderful, I think
- 9:19everybody should live. Like that.
- 9:21It's very empowering. It's.
- 9:23Freeing it's happiness Gilbert's So that's that's just one
- 9:30little. Part of it.
- 9:32I. Made sure that I.
- 9:34Made rocks with. Some of the perpetrators I went
- 9:38to different places where I was raped at and went back to it and
- 9:42kind of like. Took my one wheel.
- 9:45And just rode through that pain and I keep doing that.
- 9:49I keep riding. Through the pain, unfortunately,
- 9:54it doesn't go away. Like it's not.
- 9:57Like hey. I've woken up and.
- 9:59I don't have any more triggers today and.
- 10:02I don't have a memory. Of being raped and it's good to
- 10:06go. That hasn't happened.
- 10:10I'm just not going to and I'm not going to say that's.
- 10:14OK, because being raped. Is just not OK.
- 10:20I have to go to pelvic floor because I.
- 10:24Was raped so brutally in one attack with my own crutch for
- 10:30hours that. The insides of my body are still
- 10:35damaged. Over 20 years from that crutch
- 10:40sodomizing. Me and being placed in my
- 10:43vaginal area. For over 2.
- 10:46And a half three. Hours that I still have to go
- 10:51get help. To try to.
- 10:53Repair the damage from a rapist over 20 years.
- 11:02So I'm still. Healing.
- 11:05My body inside and out, my soul my.
- 11:08Happiness. I'm still healing and I don't.
- 11:13Think that I should have to heal.
- 11:16And keep healing from this. When the.
- 11:19Person that did that got to carry on with their life.
- 11:23These other people got to be promoted and have no.
- 11:28Real consequences to it. But I still have to keep doing.
- 11:33The work. To heal me from pain that other
- 11:37people caused. It's just simply morally wrong
- 11:43and right. Now.
- 11:46Hamas has over 100 of my people held hostage and they're being
- 11:53raped every day and you go to sleep, they are being raped and
- 12:00it's horrendous. Rape is horrendous.
- 12:03It should never be used as a means of war.
- 12:09And certainly. We should not condone.
- 12:13These kind of things we have to do better.
- 12:18We have to do better I. Am grateful.
- 12:23I'm grateful that I have the opportunity, A gift to be able
- 12:29to use some of what I've gone. Through to help others.
- 12:35I really, really am. I wouldn't wish anything that
- 12:41happened to me to anyone. It's terrible.
- 12:45I just didn't. Really.
- 12:46Talk about. But.
- 12:47It's happened to me. Very much because I'm kind of
- 12:52too busy trying to save the lives of other people, I put a
- 12:57Glock 17 in my mouth. And tried to kill myself.
- 13:01I pulled the trigger and there's somebody right now who it's
- 13:08right near that that moment, and I think that we.
- 13:15Revise that. Active duty service members are
- 13:19apparently making ends meet that literally the fire ups in the
- 13:26military have come forward and basically have begged Congress
- 13:32to sufficiently pay us for what we do.
- 13:35And it's being ignored. They say that they've given us
- 13:38the biggest pay raise ever, but the reality is you.
- 13:42Haven't. Because the states are.
- 13:46Often. Being.
- 13:48Relied on. To give people that are on
- 13:50active duty food stamps, we aren't really even feeding.
- 13:58Our own military. This isn't a Department of
- 14:01Defense issue. At this point.
- 14:03This lies with Congress. We've asked for money to make.
- 14:08Improvements to Barracks. We have some of the lowest
- 14:12levels of. Enlisted members.
- 14:15Living in despicable conditions, we need people to join the
- 14:19military. So in order for them to join the
- 14:22military, we have to show them that we're really going to take
- 14:25care of them, that this is the place you want to be.
- 14:28That this brotherhood, this sisterhood, there's nothing like
- 14:32it. I mean, to be a part of the
- 14:35military is uniquely special. You have chosen this path.
- 14:42I chose it because I love. This country, I wanted to serve
- 14:46my country. Pretty.
- 14:47Much, I mean indefinitely. I will never not still serve
- 14:54this country, but for other people.
- 14:56They only. Wanted to join for school or for
- 15:01a few. Years and I respect their
- 15:04choices. So long as they realize.
- 15:07That you are joining something. Where you could lose your life
- 15:10and if you're OK with that, then I come in.
- 15:15For a little bit, but. As this family will always be
- 15:19welcome, you will always be a part of something special that
- 15:24you will never get with your blood relatives.
- 15:27I don't care how close you are to your family.
- 15:32There is nothing like a military family.
- 15:36It's irreplaceable. It is across all ages, this
- 15:42bond. It doesn't matter what branch
- 15:45you're in. Again, go Navy, beat Army.
- 15:49I can see that because I actually served in the Navy.
- 15:54See that? So I can pick on the R&D every
- 15:58time you want, but if you do, I'm not even punch you in the
- 16:02fucking face. That's my brother and sister.
- 16:06Like, I can give that shit to them, but you can't.
- 16:09I mean, you just can't. You.
- 16:11You're not allowed. To at all whatsoever.
- 16:14So there's always these. People that want to talk about
- 16:19how they wish they had served or they were.
- 16:22Going to serve? Well, I did serve.
- 16:25I'm served. Y'all didn't.
- 16:29So your criticism? Of me is literally.
- 16:32Legible. I don't care and.
- 16:38You're not my brothers or sisters, so don't we have to
- 16:40worry about what your. Opinion is.
- 16:44I mean, what are you? Doing to serve your country.
- 16:47What do you do right now to make this country?
- 16:52Better. So what I'm asking Congress to
- 16:55do right now is to make the. Military better.
- 16:59Make it so that people really want to stay here, because it's
- 17:05a wonderful thing now. Very few, even in Congress, even
- 17:09Syria at this point. It used to be it was serve in
- 17:14the military, go to law school. And then join Congress.
- 17:21That has not happened. We got people who are not.
- 17:24Qualified. At all who know more about well.
- 17:28Some of them know. Something about sports.
- 17:30I wouldn't say they know a lot about sports.
- 17:33And then they just decided to run the.
- 17:34Office. Rather than wanting to serve
- 17:38their constituents or their people, they did this.
- 17:41For power rather than for the love.
- 17:44Of this country. So I served my country because
- 17:48I. Love this country.
- 17:51I love Americans. I.
- 17:52Love democracy like it is my soul mate.
- 17:58I mean, I'm. Sorry for my soul mate, but you
- 18:01know, I hope you can love the Constitution as much as I do.
- 18:07All jokes aside, Congress really needs to get their shit
- 18:12together. They need to fully support and
- 18:16fund the military at levels which make people want to join,
- 18:21especially this younger generation that we need to be
- 18:26able to defend democracy in the future because they have to have
- 18:31good living conditions, they need to be able to eat.
- 18:36It is no longer like you have a good.
- 18:38Retirement package to retire? On we Don't You want to know who
- 18:43messed it up? Congress.
- 18:47You want to know who messed up retention rates for the
- 18:49military? Congress, You want to know who
- 18:53messed up people? Wanting to serve.
- 18:56This country, Congress, and they don't even serve.
- 19:02And without us, democracy doesn't work.
- 19:06Y'all can try to enforce democracy without the military
- 19:10and it just won't work. You need us, so that means you
- 19:15need to clothe us. You need to make sure that we
- 19:19have good high levels of pay that our.
- 19:23Barracks are taken. Care of that we are well funded
- 19:28so that we can make sure that democracy.
- 19:30Carries forward in the. Future rather than Congress
- 19:35being cowards. So that's.
- 19:39My talking point on that now? I will give them some.
- 19:43Credit today. Poverty has been their choice,
- 19:50right? Poverty is a is a.
- 19:51Choice in this country. The child tax credit passed
- 19:56overwhelmingly with bipartisan. Support in the House.
- 20:01Today, I mean they. Had to go around and do it a
- 20:05different way, because if you of course, MAGA Republicans, it's
- 20:09their choice, their choice to make sure.
- 20:12Children. Starve in this country.
- 20:14Rather than be risen. Out of poverty so that we can.
- 20:18Have a continuation of. Our generations that are going
- 20:21to support democracy. But those people don't matter.
- 20:26What matters today is today. In this country.
- 20:31Together, together, Democrats and Republicans said, poverty.
- 20:38Is not our. Choice.
- 20:42That's effective legislation. That's Congress doing what they
- 20:48have been elected to do. So they should stand a little
- 20:53bit taller. They should stand in pride.
- 20:57And remember. That legislation is exactly what
- 21:03they have been sent there to do. They have been sent there to
- 21:07solve problems of all. Americans.
- 21:11No matter what their political affiliation is.
- 21:14And today the House of Representatives conducted
- 21:19themselves in that manner. Wow.
- 21:23That's only one small little drop in the bucket.
- 21:28Because you know. They out here trying to spend.
- 21:30All taxpayer money on some bullshit and you're like, what?
- 21:36Bullshit. The bullshit I'm trying to use
- 21:40impeachment for. The the secretary of.
- 21:43Homeland Security for. Political gain.
- 21:47So this is where you're done. Fucked up, right?
- 21:51Stop. Spending our money on shit
- 21:54that's not real. Like we as Americans don't get
- 21:59to have our money wasted. It's fraudulent misuse of our
- 22:03funds, of our taxpayer dollars, and every American should be
- 22:07pissed the fuck off when they do something like that.
- 22:11In fact, you know, they should have their penny docked for dumb
- 22:15little games like that. What?
- 22:18Let's hope. Y'all.
- 22:20Let's truly hope today, Republicans and Democrats said
- 22:26poverty. Is not our.
- 22:29Choice. So that means that when we turn
- 22:34this house blue, we're going to get stuff done, we're going to
- 22:39take care of things together, that there can be true
- 22:44bipartisan packages and solutions to huge issues can be
- 22:52solved together. So that's kind of, it's kind of
- 22:59my inflection of the day, you know, I've spent a lot of.
- 23:03Years in service to this country.
- 23:06And goodly, I'm definitely more qualified.
- 23:09Than half of those people in the fucking House of Representatives
- 23:13and Senate. But here I am trying to save
- 23:17the. Lives of veterans.
- 23:19Every. Single.
- 23:19Day I can and. I just wanted to take the.
- 23:22Time to have some reflection on how far I've come, because I've
- 23:28come very far I. Can go to.
- 23:30Dance clubs. Now I can.
- 23:33Sleep with. Guys that have beards, I can
- 23:38have fun and dance again I can. Go in the ocean, I can surf I.
- 23:44Can snowboard by myself and not care?
- 23:48As in, like, I don't believe that I'm going to be attacked by
- 23:51somebody I've been boxing and let's just say hockey.
- 23:59Ball with bitches, I'm. Ready.
- 24:03So you know, I'm just. I'm proud of me.
- 24:08I don't think I ever say this to myself.
- 24:10But like I'm. Proud of you.
- 24:11I'm doing the cue. I'm proud of you because I have
- 24:15spoken. About some of the darkest.
- 24:17Things that has happened in my life.
- 24:20With dignity. And I have.
- 24:23At the same time been saving people who have been trying to
- 24:27kill. Themselves.
- 24:28From the exact same thing that happened to them.
- 24:32Because of this. Horrible culture.
- 24:34In the military. I'm going to take a moment to
- 24:39reflect on the fact that I spent almost 15 years of my life in
- 24:45domestic violence and today. I reflected on why.
- 24:52Is it called domestic violence? There is nothing domesticated
- 24:59about violence like it almost insinuates.
- 25:06That Violet. Should be tamed.
- 25:08And that it's. Domesticated because it's at
- 25:11home well. I can tell.
- 25:14You with this red mark on my lip that.
- 25:17Has nothing to do with a beauty. Mark.
- 25:21It's from being punched in the face.
- 25:23By my ex-husband. Or my teeth being fucked up and
- 25:26not aligned properly from him hitting me in the face with
- 25:30baseball. Bats and besides his first and
- 25:33hammers like. I know you see me.
- 25:39You don't really see me. You don't see what I have been
- 25:45through. I just don't.
- 25:47Talk. About it very often.
- 25:49I don't go into deep down right horrible details, but I think
- 25:57that the more I do, perhaps it will help you understand that
- 26:03violence like that is not domesticated.
- 26:08I was hit repeatedly, whether I was at home with this man or
- 26:13not. Violence should never be viewed
- 26:17as something that is tamable. It's horrendous and as I.
- 26:25Grow. Into myself, I believe that
- 26:28words become increasingly important.
- 26:31I believe that the way we label ourselves are much more valuable
- 26:38than the labels that other people put on us.
- 26:43I got to experience this beautiful college that
- 26:49specializes for the non hearing. What's unimportant because this
- 26:57is what they have chosen to identify themselves.
- 27:00As. Non hearing rather than death.
- 27:05I acknowledge that. I think it's wonderful.
- 27:09I think that when somebody informed.
- 27:12Me. What the proper terminology of
- 27:15somebody who cannot hear wishes to be labeled as it's an
- 27:22acknowledgement of them. I could see them, I could hear
- 27:27them. The visually impaired.
- 27:31I've helped, you know some snow waters with that, and they
- 27:37prefer to be called visually impaired rather than blind.
- 27:43It's important. It's important that we recognize
- 27:48people as they want to be called rather than a label that usually
- 27:54a perpetrator or society has placed on someone.
- 27:59I think it's so important that we take the.
- 28:02Time to truly. Recognize people as they wish to
- 28:08be seen. When you've been raped.
- 28:12When you've been sexually assaulted.
- 28:15When you have been violently abused and only abused, as in
- 28:21beaten almost every day with a baseball.
- 28:25Bat a hammer. First knocked out, unconscious
- 28:29almost every single day. Waking up in pools of blood,
- 28:33being suffocated, having guns, being put in your mouth, being
- 28:38stabbed, being almost drowned, that's not abuse.
- 28:44That's a description of what has happened to me and so many
- 28:49others like me. So when you say abuse, it
- 28:55doesn't really explain what has happened to a person.
- 29:02And I think that the word domestic violence should be
- 29:05changed. You're more than welcome to help
- 29:08me find a proper word, but I think it needs to be changed to
- 29:13reflect the pain that it causes people and families.
- 29:19So that's what I. Have today.
- 29:22I appreciate you listening to me.
- 29:24As always. Your sister's here.
- 29:27This Amazonian is here. If you're.
- 29:29Suicidal. If you need someone to talk to,
- 29:32if you're homeless, if you just don't know what the fuck to do
- 29:36at this point, I'm here. Reach out.
- 29:40I will. Help you whatever way I can and.
- 29:45You're not alone, and it doesn't get better.
- 29:51It gets wonderful to be free and to live how you really want to
- 29:56be, to come into yourself, to experience who you truly are.
- 30:03It's stunning and I encourage you all to heal.
- 30:08Your shadows. To not be afraid of it at all.
- 30:11To embrace yourself and to stand tall.
- 30:16So that's all I got, Amazonians and I'm going to have a drink
- 30:22now because I. Definitely deserved.
- 30:25It and I don't know why you people participated in dry
- 30:28January. I just maybe somebody should
- 30:31fill me in, but I'm not doing that.
- 30:33So much love. And see you next time.
- 30:39That's the show for today everyone.
- 30:41Thanks for listening. We'll be back next week with an
- 30:44all new show. And remember, you can listen to
- 30:46us again and again. The podcast of this radio show
- 30:50is available right after we go off the air tonight.
- 30:53Anywhere that you can get your podcast episodes and thanks for
- 30:58joining us today. I'd like to take a moment to
- 31:01talk about something close to my heart.
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- 31:44your home. Help make a difference in the
- 31:46lives of our veterans. Because once again, we're all
- 31:50here for you and not for us. We're giving a veterans a voice.
- 31:58Bag of Mike and Ice for $25. Y'all crate.
- 32:03I will buy you 25 fucking things.
- 32:06Other than that, yeah, there's a move up there.