Caged Eyes: An Air Force Cadet’s Story of Rape and Resilience

An insider’s account of misogyny and rape in the US military and her extraordinary path to recovery and activism In one of the worst scandals ever faced by the military, in 2003, six women went public with their accounts of sexual assault and harassment at the Air Force Academy. The relentless media attention and congressional inquiry instigated a crisis at the Academy, one pitting rape survivors against the classmates who blamed them for trying to destroy the institution. Lynn Hall was one of those survivors desperate to realize her childhood dream of being an astronaut. For Hall, the military offered an escape from her chaotic home life - her erratic mother, absent biological father, and a man she called dad who sexually abused her. She’s dismissed from the Academy when, after being raped by a classmate and contracting herpes, she is diagnosed with meningitis and left with chronic pain. A story of grappling with shame and a culture that blames victims, Caged Eyes is also a moving account of Hall’s struggle to advocate for herself and recognize her own strength.