Our military is facing a sexual assault crisis. And this week a prominent opinion writer for the Wall Street Journal, James Taranto, made it worse. Taranto referred to efforts to reduce sexual assault in the military as "becoming an effort to criminalize male sexuality.” Framing the campaign as a “war on men,” he used terms like “hanky-panky” and “sexual recklessness” to describe potential sexual assault, belittling the seriousness of the crime.

More than 19,000 sexual assaults occurred in the military in 2010 and nearly one in three military women report unwanted sexual assault. Taranto’s victim-blaming is a slap in the face to those survivors and the people who love and respect them. We deserve responsible media coverage that addresses this ongoing crisis, instead of denying it.

The Ms. Foundation for Women and the Service Women’s Action Network are outraged. Help us send a message to the Wall Street Journal that women will not tolerate hateful rhetoric and sexist doctrine on the opinion pages. Sign our petition calling for the disciplining of Taranto and a formal meeting with the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board.

As Taranto’s writing makes clear, we have much more to do to end the culture of acceptance of violence against women.