Producer Roxanne Captor released a short documentary film titled "Homecoming: Veterans, Wives and Mothers” which introduces us to women who have served in the American military. It is a sympathetic look at women who define themselves as warriors, who spend time away from their families, and who (too often) come home physically wounded or with PTSD. The documentary is available for viewing on Sofy TV and Shorts International Network.
I had a chance to interview Roxanne to learn more.
Why did you create this documentary?
As the role of American women in uniform continually brings them closer to combat operations and the nature of modern war blurs the difference between front and rear operations, many returning women veterans are confronted with challenges during deployment which may change the way they return to life at home. HOMECOMING has these women speak for themselves about their trials and tribulations, their hopes and dreams, their frustrations and achievements. The film tells the stories of these women veterans’ as they navigate the new battlefield...THE HOME-FRONT. These “home” war stories will resonate for years to come.
When women veterans return from tour, they are faced with the challenge of re-adapting to life at home. They join the ranks of wives and mothers while bringing disenfranchised families back together. At the same time they maybe dealing with issues such as PTSD, physical disabilities, navigating the VA, racism, sexual abuse, anxiety attacks, and homelessness.
My husband (Captain, USN, Submarine Service) and father-in-law (Decorated Major, US Marine, Pilot) are lifetime military officers having served in Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq and Afghanistan and 911. My father-in-law saved many POW'S in Vietnam. I have experienced the military family issues first hand. Many of my personal female friends are active duty and Admirals who have experienced many of the topics HOMECOMING addresses.
The veterans as well as the producing team are of a diverse mix and background lead by filmmaker Roxanne Messina Captor.
Why is it so important to recognize women's contributions in the military?
The purpose of HOMECOMING is to highlight women whose bond and spirit will not be broken as they are heroes. We want people to understand how to best appreciate and help these women warriors. These women have extraordinary discipline, courage, and capacity - that’s the focus! We also want to bring awareness to the issues facing Women Veterans both at home and overseas. It illustrates the human impact of Veteran Women and War as we follow these families to provide a look that goes beyond what we perceive.
This film brings awareness, engages people in conversation and creates empathy for Women Veterans and their families. These issues appeal to a broad audience because it shows the different dynamics of women and their family structures. As a filmmaker the goal was to accurately portray the lives of these women on the homefront.
What surprised you the most while you were working on this?
While working on this documentary there were many questions that kept arising that we found surprising. Does the system support women veterans? How are the challenges for women different from what men face? Do they serve another deployment? How do they stay in touch with their team that is still serving? Why aren’t women generally thought of when the public thinks of veterans?
These questions came from learning more about these women’s roles and the challenges they faced since they were women. For the first time in history, women have done the job on the front lines that men used to do. Many female veterans are hesitant to tell their story as they don’t want to look weak in front of their comrades, experience the loss of promotion, etc. Additionally, women who experienced a trauma while deployed have more difficulties transitioning and finding appropriate help.
Here are some of the staging statistics that highlight these issues:
According to the Department of Defense, in 2010 more than 30,000 single mothers have deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, and as of 2006 more than 40% of active duty women have children.
Although many women will not tell their stories, the numbers are growing. 8% of the veteran population are women and in ten years it will rise to 14%. The current projected percentage of U.S. Veterans who are women is 10%.
In FY 2009 and FY 2010 PTSD, hypertension, and depression were the top three diagnostic categories for women veterans treated by the VA.
In Los Angeles alone, 8000 vets are now homeless. The number of homeless women veterans has doubled from 1,380 in FY 2006 to 3,328 in FY 2010. Many of these women are single mothers.
In FY 2009, the average age of women Veterans was 48 years, compared to 63 years for their male counterpart
According to a recent Pentagon report, the rate of violent sexual crimes within the military has increased by 64% since 2006.
In FY 2010, according to the VA, 77% of homeless female veterans were unemployed. One of the key factors for this larger percentage could be the lack of accessible and affordable child care.
152 women died in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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