A top Navy officer has been reassigned after failing to take action when sailors engaged in anti-gay hazing, according to a report uncovered by the Associated Press. 

Master Chief Machinist’s Mate Charles Berry was serving as “chief of the boat” on the USS Florida and was allegedly aware of hazing in which a sailor faced attempted rape at knifepoint. For eight months, the sailor was repeatedly referred to using gay slurs on board and threatened with sexual assault, and Berry was reassigned when it was discovered he did not inform his chain of command about the hazing. 

The report says there was a culture of hazing and sexual harassment aboard the submarine and there was inadequate knowledge about the Navy’s policies against it to stop the behavior before the sailor reached that point.

More counseling and training was ordered at all levels to avoid similar problems in the future.

“The Navy’s standards for personal behavior are very high and it demands that sailors are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. When individuals fall short of this standard of professionalism and personal behavior, the Navy will take swift and decisive action to stop undesirable behavior, protect victims and hold accountable those who do not meet its standards,” the Navy said in the March 30 statement.

This is a serious issue that doesn’t get a whole lot of press coverage. Give this article a read for some good background.