The system doesn’t just fail the families of missing Latinas; it has also repeatedly let down the women who needed their help. This is, perhaps, most infamously evident in the case of Vanessa Guillén, the 20-year-old U.S. Army soldier who was bludgeoned to death by another soldier, Aaron David Robinson, on April 22, 2020. Before the Mexican American servicewoman went missing, she sought refuge in a superior, informing them that she had been sexually harassed twice at the Fort Hood (renamed Fort Cavazos in 2023), TX, armory where she was stationed. Investigations that occurred after her death found that her supervisor failed to report the harassment and other officials did not take appropriate action. “Leaders, regardless of rank, are accountable for what happens in their units and must have the courage to speak up and intervene when they recognize actions that bring harm to our soldiers and to the integrity of our institution,” former Secretary of the Army Ryan D. McCarthy said in a statement following the findings of an independent review into leadership at the base, which led to 14 leaders and soldiers being suspended or relieved, in December 2020.
