Mitigating the Toxic Leaders of Tailhook 91 - Essay Example

The Tail Hook Report ‘91 15th April, I. Introduction A. Background The social activities associated with the Tailhook 91 were the squadron hospitality suites where issues associated with the navy officer’s gross misconduct took place. The event was attended due to different reasons one of which involved taking advantage of the professional symposium as well as for social reasons. To be specific, the social events took place especially in the third floor squadron hospitality suites. Such social events and gatherings were always organized and funded by Defense contractors and always occurred in various hospitality suites. All the Tailhook attendees were expected to enjoy the freedom of association within these events. These late night parties were a characteristic of the Tailhook events. However, the Association was under the governance of strict rules and DoD regulations that were applicable to both civilian and military employees. The rules were helpful in restoration of order through placement of strict limits on the consumption of liquor and entertainment. There was a clear difference on the events associated with the different sponsorship deals as provided by contractors and later the squadron sponsorship of the suites. Strict deals were a necessity in regulating the relationship between contractor and DoD employees. The parties were central in reinforcing the relationship between the sponsors and the key military personnel. The idea of allowing other naval squadrons alongside commands to sponsor suites elevated the parties to the point of competition. Such increase in the level of competition also made it possible for the suites to try outdo one another, therefore, allowing certain degree of freedom that eventually turned to be abusive towards females. Additionally, the mentality created by such freedom led to excessive consumption of alcohol alongside increase in rowdy and gross disrespectful behavior within the conventions. Subsequent years experienced such events as drunkenness, public nudity and sex, strippers that was now a completion amongst senior and junior naval officers within various squadrons. B. History and Mission of the Tailhook Association The Tailhook Association was initiated in 1956 during a reunion event in Mexico where aviators from different fleets met. The membership grew rapidly to over sixteen thousand members in 1991. General membership incorporated active aviators, those retired as well as civilians. As indicated the Tailhook represents a political and social situation that incorporated active as well as retired Naval and Marine Corps aviators of different ranks and grades and from different departments of the Department of Defense. In real essence, the entire story is about the disturbing events within the 35th Annual symposium that was organized by Tailhook Association in 1991. The association is recognized for a number of activities one of which includes organizing annual symposium that brings together different members of the association. Most of the social activities took place on the squadron hospitality suites in Las Vegas Hilton. The events that took place during the symposium is what triggered the Tailhook investigations. The investigations were initiated following rampant accusations made by the females in attendance concerning the indecent behavior and assaults of junior officers as well as senior officers towards the female attendees. Several issues should be reviewed and followed by appropriate correction. II. Where were the Authorities: The Toxic Leader/Leaders Identified Identify Toxic Leaders The toxic leaders in the Tailhook Association annual symposium ’91 were recognized as top ranking navy officials alongside other junior officers who were involved in sexually-related activities including assaulting 83 women and 7 men as reported by the Office of the Inspector General. One of the major contributing factors involved the timing of the party which occurred during late evenings in the hotel. Such timing greatly encouraged the assault that eventually made the event infamously recognized as catalytic. Consequently, the fallout resulted in the dismissal of several high ranking officers in the navy. There was also the problem of incorporating women to the ranks of the navy as well as the negative perception on the Navy’s reputation (Office of the Inspector General, 2003). B. The 35th Annual Tailhook Symposium 1. The Official Program The program was meant to be an enjoyable and informative event for Tailhook ’91. In this case official attendees were known to be 2100 professionals that included aviators, contactors as well as civilian personnel. The general talk revolved around Gulf War and the official role of Navy aviators that could guarantee success. Additionally, many junior officers also attended the event and were members of the panel. The issue of women getting involved always led to heated debates on the presence of women in combat. Generally, the issue on affirmative action was eminent in the whole event, resulting into unclear opinion of DoD towards women in combat. 2. The Unofficial Program The scene of the event had several attendees in this case only 2,100 had authentic registration for the formal program as was scheduled. However, the number rose to almost 4,000 attendees. The normal reservation was always done for over twenty hospitality suites which were utilized for different purposes. The event was organized for spreading awareness amongst the naval officers and provision of space for socializing in late afternoons. However, in this event, things changed, the private funding by the squadrons was misuse of authority since they allowed consumption within the vicinity of the hospitality suites. The overwhelming number of attendees created unnecessary crowding with people drinking carelessly and at the same time, rough-housing. The damage on the carpet on frequent occasions was a clear revelation on the kind of damage that usually took place on the third floor after each Talhook symposium. The presence of excess attendees raised expenses on the side of the association, and after the Tailhook ’91, they were forced to pay substantial money to Hilton for the eminent damage that was done by the attendees. The act of using joint security forces provided by both Hilton and the association, also contributed to damage since none seem to be in command to control improper activities during the event (Culbertson and Rosenfeld, 1990). III. The Followers The followers (in terms of rank) were the main “leaders” in bad behavior: Analyses of how and why they can be identified as the toxic leaders (in terms of rank) Aviators In this incidence, over 140 junior aviators participated in the harassment of the women including other indiscipline activities. These included several top leadership of the Navy such as Secretary of the Navy, the Advocate General of the Navy, Inspector General as well as the Chief of Naval Operations. Contractors The contractors were the chief organizers of the symposium events and contributed to a greater percentage on the chaotic situation owing to the existing competition amongst them. The contractors had fundamental responsibility to the victim and their family members directly affected by the incident; this called for such support organizations to be in collaborative relationship for the purposes of ensuring that integrity is upheld. Active and Retired Navy Officers The active Navy personnel in 1991 were over five hundred and seventy thousand officers. There was further reorganization of new purposes for the Navy that involved shifting from heavy investment in equipment towards supporting operations of joint forces. However, the role of women were limited in the entire service with the number of those in service during World War I approximated to be 13,000. Majority of these women were represented by a small auxiliary force of nurses. This changed during World War II where a number of women served at other capacities beyond traditional clerical as well as nursing roles. IV. The environment Las Vegas Hilton Hotel (Atmosphere was a critical factor) The setting of the environment within the venue contributed a lot on the gross misconduct of the officers. The availability of excessive freedom, allowing excessive drinking and the time of the event encouraged the estranged behaviors. For instance, the presence of drinking contexts promoted the drinking of 15 drinks in order to win a headband. Such activities within the event produced walking zombies whose behaviors contradicted the Navy’s integrity from the public view. Therefore, the setting of the environment had a role to play in the indiscipline behavior that took place at Hilton. The atmosphere in the third floor late parties was characterized by liquor and indiscipline behavior from the drunken officers (Office of the Inspector General, 2003). The level of intoxication from the headband contexts is thought to have been the major contributor to behaviors such as sexual assault where the several low-ranked enlisted officers failed the integrity test. On this case, the initial investigation identified that a lot of the female navy pilots were hookers, topless dancers during the party (Office of the Inspector General, 2003). However, such a claim was contradicted by the assistant Secretary of the Navy, Barbara S. Pope. The culture of the armed services is extremely important (especially since the enrollment of women within the Navy was increasing) The culture of the U.S Navy encouraged integrity of character, where Navy officers were required to avoid any form of lewd behaviors. Much was expected from the leadership of the Navy and the marines concerning morality. The aspect on respect towards human dignity is an indisputable character that transcends the boundaries of institution’s culture and beliefs. The military as a hierarchical organization should ensure high level of accountability at every level of service. Following the chain of command upwards, there is tendency of accountability narrowing to fewer individuals, therefore, making accountability to be less dependent on actual knowledge of the subordinates. In such scenarios involving abuse against women, contains elements of surprise on the side of the victim and may result into trauma. Most of the victims at times lack control on the process through faith and reasoning. This shows that there are various shifts within the political arena that involves growing assertiveness resulting from opposing parties. This led to disruption on several strategic representations that signify settled organizational structure. From the study, it is evident the aspect of increased experiences on clear-cut division of labour within institutions that lead to diplomatic interactions between parties. However, the level of effectiveness of oppression prevention programs as introduced through learning and economic institutions largely depends on institutional policies. For instance, any intervention program applied reveals little outcomes if combined intervention of policymakers, administrators and educationists was made unavailable. Therefore, this shows that not all factors and procedures favour the effectiveness of intervention programs within such institutions (Culbertson and Rosenfeld, 1990). The Gauntlet The “Gaunlet” was one of the major activities during the event where junior aviation officers crowded the hallway in wait for women to pass through. The event took place on the third-floor as a mainstay tradition. This event encouraged assaults and bad behaviors since the junior officer could ruthlessly, inappropriately and carelessly grab and touch women. The event comprised of both willing and unsuspecting women who were at times lured into the trap. C. Intoxication of participants The contexts surrounding the headband activities promoted drunkenness amongst the officers where drinking champions were required to consume 15 bottles at ago. The women who participated in the “Gaunlet” were usually intoxicated with drinks to the extent that they were not aware of the happenings. In this case, a good example was Lt. Paula Coughlin confessions on how the junior officers harassed her before she fought back for her freedom. Sexual Harassment and Assaults The presence of girls performing lurid sexual related activities on naval aviators encouraged the gross misconduct as reported by the media. These unacceptable behaviors was an indication of lack of responsibility and moral decadence alongside exhibiting inadequate integrity as expected from the Navy and Marine Corps officers. There is a lot of demand from the officers from the society’s perspective since they are required to be role models (Culbertson and Rosenfeld, 1990). V. Strategies used for mitigating toxic leaders and Followers There were a number of mitigation strategies put in place that were used as means of providing resolution to the issues at hand that involved the formal discipline of a number of officers. Additionally, other senior officers such as Rear Admiral Williams and Rear admiral E. Gordon were forced to resign as a result of the gross misconduct from the junior staff under their leadership. As a result some of the officers did not receive promotion for the reasons of allowing such integrity floss. There was also some legislation ratified for the purposes of shifting the status of military women. Initial Allegations Concerning the case on sexual harassment, there were evident reports from the victims such as Lt. Coughlin who fell a victim. The report on the mistreatment was channeled to her superior Rear Adm. Snyder. The allegations were repeatedly reported but no action seems eminent. There was a letter sent to those in charge of the squadron’s hospitality suites concerning these allegations. The indications were that the events were always successful and involved responsible activities. However, there was a major and serious concern on the after-hours activities that took place in the third floor with specific focus on the gauntlet. First Investigation The navy responded by conducting a number of investigations with first investigation coming as a response to the letter that was written by Coughlin to Rear Adm. Dunleavy who was the Chief Naval Aviation. A criminal investigation was immediately conducted by the Naval Investigative Service (NIS) under the leadership of Rear Adm. Duvall Williams. The major agenda of the investigations was on assault on women specifically the one that was done to Coughlin. The leakage of the information on assault to the media led Garret to order separation of navy from Tailhook Association. The focus of the investigations was stemmed on inappropriate actions from the Navy’s support of the Tailhook Association and the organization of annual symposium (Culbertson and Rosenfeld, 1990). It is clear that first investigation was marred by several malpractices that eventually affected the smooth operations of the investigations. The inability to share information between NIS and Naval IG’s investigation complicated the matter. Adamant resistance was the order of the day throughout the investigative process where those under questioning purportedly denied the allegations on lewd behavior. There was a clear evidence on stonewalling of the whole investigation. In this case, there was waste of resources and time since they could not establish the suspects of the assault on Coughlin. Second Investigation The second investigation took place in 1992 following the new reports detailing the behavior that transpired on the third floor of the Hilton. The reports were released by both NIS and Naval IG. In the second investigation around one thousand five hundred officers were questioned and the outcome was the naming of two suspects, one of which was a member of the Australian air force and the other a marine captain from the Naval Air Station in Meridian. Mitigation (Punishment) Debate The overall investigations should mainly expose the nature of the formal leadership within the organization. The investigations should have further exposed the nature of interdependence of the legally separate organizations comprising Tailhook Association and the U.S. Navy. In this case, the contrasting sense between these two entities concerning various aspects such as accountability, organizational structure and mission should be reconstructed to ensure prevention of such scandals in future. It is important to note that such investigations would better involve small groups having role play scenarios; for instance the use of close friends relating their experiences in person or via video footage is an important aspect in such cases. Also, timing is a very important aspect whereby, the first few minutes of the incident to collection of remains and personal effects of the victim should be considered with high degree of secretiveness. Additionally, the establishment of system badges capable of identifying suspects, family members and close friends is a necessity. However, the media should be updated on progress of notification process through application of number codes and not victim’s details. The nature of approach as adopted by the team in Tailhook investigations ensures existence of strong security bodies capable of considering military affairs on equal basis. The idea on policies used within these institutions considers possible dichotomy between competition and complementarities. Final Findings: Completed Report There was conclusive report at the end of the two phases, the report from the first phase criticized activities surrounding initial investigations. This led to naming and dismissal of a number of officers including early retirement of the head of the NIS, and the Navy Judge Advocate General. The conclusion of the second report came after the swearing in of Bill Clinton as the president of the United States, leading to the appointment of Rear Adm. Frank Kelso former Chief of Naval Operations to serve as the Acting Secretary of the Navy. The term of Clinton saw inclusion of major talks on gay promotion within the military ranks. This was followed by a letter from the women to Clinton concerning Tailhook scandal demanding the release of Tailhook Report to the public. Finally, the report was released in April 1993 based on 2,900 interviews of those who attended the Tailhook ’91. From the report, it emerged that the department found it difficult dealing with issues on accountability of the leadership team. There was acknowledgement from the report on the debate concerning the place of women in combat. This was one of the suspected issues that might have influenced the crude behavior throughout the convention. One of the victims cited the heightened emotions as the origin of such gross misconduct. Different ingredients for emotional whirlwind were also cited such as presence of alcohol (Fletcher et al., 1991). VI. Conclusion The institution should indulge its staff in further training as pertains to morality and integrity of character. At the same time for the purposes of facilitating future administration and investigations, expert-run system should be applicable in the DoD for the purposes of managing information inflow and out-flows. Such remissions are possible through centralization of various activities within the headquarters. This system provides more central approach in handling various discrepancies within different sections and departments operating within DoD. This is since all units under the same umbrella share information on their various challenges and solutions, therefore, providing easy task when it comes to decision making within various subsidiaries. Information shared through such system is recognizable by other sections of defense on the basis of reliability. In such cases, it is possible for the management to scrutinize integrity before information leaks to other outside sources such as the media. At the same time, DoD should utilize the use of document sharing between constituent departments for the purposes of ensuring that some aspects within the group that requires fixing are all attended to in time. These include such aspects as organizations principle objectives, mission and vision alongside the code of ethics. Such crucial information sharing technique is possible across the company’s network system. This facilitates easy and effective retrieval, re-creation, and use of confidential information within operations. Such investigations involving gross misconduct should involve heavy technological machineries, which include the use of computers, video footages and forensic test procedures. There is need for special assistance team set aside for such purposes led by Special Assistance Coordinator from criminal investigation department. It is also necessary that members of the special unit be drawn from various government departments dealing with internal security and criminology. Such delegation should undergo training pertaining to crisis response and would be required to demonstrate compassion, sympathy, technical expertise and professionalism within intended areas. The team is required to understand the need for retrieving crucial information from prime suspects and other witnesses including victims. There is also the need to remain non-judgmental and compassionate while in the process of unearthing the truth behind such lewd behaviors. References Culbertson, A., & Rosenfeld, P. (1990). Assessment of Sexual Harassment in Active Duty Navy. Military Psychology, 6(2): 69-93 Fletcher, J. W., Joyce, S. McMahon, A. O. (1991). “Tradition, Technology, and the Changing Roles of Women in the Navy” Minerva, 11(3): 57 Office of the Inspector General. (2003). The Tailhook Report: the official inquiry into the events of tailhook 91. New York, NY: St. Martins Griffin. Read More