More than 2.1 million women veterans live in the U.S. today. By 2040, they are projected to make up 18% of all veterans, making them the fastest-growing group of veterans, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Adobe Stock) Listen to this story here. By Kathryn Carley Nov 11, 2026 To mark Veterans Day, women veterans are calling for […]
More than 2.1 million women veterans live in the U.S. today. By 2040, they are projected to make up 18% of all veterans, making them the fastest-growing group of veterans, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (Adobe Stock)
Listen to this story here.
By Kathryn Carley
Nov 11, 2026
To mark Veterans Day, women veterans are calling for greater female representation within the military to address the high rate of sexual assaults and lack of adequate mental health care.
Under the Trump administration, the Pentagon has removed several high-ranking female military officers and blocked the promotions of dozens more.
Rebecca Cornell du Houx, executive director of the Sisters in Arms Center in Augusta, which provides emergency shelter to women veterans and their children, said women leaders are more likely to champion policies demanding safety and respect.
“It is really necessary that we create a culture where sexual assault, harassment isn’t permitted, and it goes back to ensuring that we have women in leadership positions,” Cornell du Houx asserted.
One in three active-duty service members reported incidents of unwanted sexual contact or sexual assault to the Department of War last year, up from one in four in 2023, but Cornell du Houx noted many assaults still go unreported. Military sexual trauma significantly increases the risk of suicide and homelessness for women veterans, who now make up 10% of the overall homeless veteran population.
The Sisters in Arms Center offers them a temporary safe haven, counseling, access to services and help finding an affordable home. Cornell du Houx has been working with state lawmakers to ensure the center receives adequate funding but noted another sexual trauma counselor is needed. She added based on what women veterans have given to their country, they deserve greater support.
“Women have incredible determination and because they’ve had to climb the ladder and do everything to prove themselves over and over again that they have incredible endurance and strength,” Cornell du Houx emphasized.
She noted during her most recent deployment overseas, women service members were often overseeing active military operations and arranging for childcare back home. She stressed women veterans at the Sisters in Arms Center are grateful for all financial donations as well as the people who drop off essential living or cleaning supplies — small gestures to make a difference on their path to recovery.
Welcome to the Solon Center for Research and Publishing first bimonthly issue of Insights Literary/Art Journal. Stories from authors published and unpublished will debut here. Original art will accompany the stories. We’ll host contests, working with Gallery Fukurou, of Rockland, Maine and the Maine publisher Polar Bear & Company.
Maine Insights, a 501(c)4, connects our main streets with lawmakers in Augusta, highlighting state policies, technological innovations, agriculture, education, community growth and economics with factual analysis, individual profiles and exclusive in-depth coverage. We also report on areas where justice is not being served in the hope to be a contributing catalyst for change.
Your contribution today, will ensure our reporting continues into the future. Please send your donation to 8 Brook St., Solon, ME 04979.
Visit PEN for in-depth coverage of how America is addressing the climate crises. Systemic racism has held back progress, along with the deep pockets of industry that don’t want to change the status quo.
Protect Earth Newsmagazine highlights what lawmakers from the local level on up to the Federal Government are doing to protect the earth. We also report on community ingenuity and innovations that will help the U.S.A. transition to being powered by 100 percent, clean renewable energy. A 501(c)3 project of the Solon Center for Research and Publishing.
