thedrifter
07-12-05, 08:22 AM
Recruits kept in dark, activists say
Group says students need truth about joining military
By RIA MEGNIN
The Salinas Californian
The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines are having trouble attracting recruits.
Peace activists hope to keep it that way.
The all-volunteer armed services are suffering manpower strains because of the simultaneous conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army has been particularly hurt by mounting U.S. casualties - more than 1,700 in Iraq alone - a toll that might be discouraging young people from enlisting.
"With the war going on right now, there's a lot of challenge," said Army Sgt. Joseph Mees, a recruiter at the Seaside Army Recruiting Station. "Family, media, everybody wants to run and hide. But (recruits) are still coming in."
Bob Fitch of the Santa Cruz Resource Center for Non-Violence, who led a counter-recruitment workshop Saturday in Salinas, said most recruits believe the military is their only option.
"Recruiters go after vulnerable kids: the ones with no jobs, no hope, no money for college and no personal identity," Fitch said.
Mees said it's not true that the Army targets students from low-income or minority backgrounds.
"We're looking anywhere, everywhere for qualified
recruits," he said. "It's not for everybody. But we're trying to provide them with all the info so they can make an educated decision."
At Saturday's workshop, about 20 volunteers discussed how to make sure Monterey County high school and college students get "all the information."
"A number of us are ex-teachers, and we're here because we don't want to see our former students used as cannon fodder," said Jeanne Turner of Monterey, a retired elementary school teacher.
Activists said students have other options, and that the military can't match the college scholarships, wages, travel or service opportunities available in the private sector.
Opting out
A provision in the federal No Child Left Behind Act requires that high schools provide contact information for all juniors and seniors, both male and female, to military recruiters. Before the law was signed in 2002, Pentagon officials said, about 12 percent of the nation's public schools refused to turn over student records to military recruiters.
Public affairs officer John Heil of the Sacramento Army Recruiting Center said access to student lists is essential.
"Across the nation, we need another 80,000 soldiers for the active Army, and 22,175 for the reserve," Heil said. "(With the lists), we may reach a person who may never have heard about what we offer."
Parents can sign opt-out forms, but local activists say schools aren't doing enough to inform them of that right.
Saturday's volunteers hope to get other school districts to follow the lead of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District board, which voted this spring to have opt-out notices appear on school emergency cards.
The Pajaro Valley district encompasses the northern fringe of Monterey County and Watsonville and Aptos in Santa Cruz County.
At least one Pajaro Valley school board member might resign over the decision. Trustee Evelyn Volpa, whose son serves in the Air Force, said the opt-out notice is anti-military.
Carole Erickson of the Peace Coalition of Monterey County said that is not the thinking behind local efforts.
"We're not saying, 'Don't sign up for the Army.' We're saying, be aware of what you're doing and know the alternatives," Erickson said.
Activists say recruiters mislead minority and low-income students with inflated promises of college money and career preparation.
"I saw a lot of recruitment in high school," said Hartnell College student Edward Lopez, 24, of Soledad, who attended the workshop. "They weren't telling you the full story, the chance of actual conflict. They just focused on the scholarships, the job training."
"They don't tell you you get more money through financial aid than you ever will from the Army," said Susan Courrejou of Salinas, a 54-year-old Soledad teacher. "Recruitment signs are about travel and job training, but when I think of the emotional damage when a young man comes out, I think there's got to be other ways."
Mees said recruiters are required to talk about the possibility of being sent to a war zone.
"It's called 'the Armed Forces' for a reason," he said. "But most (recruits) never see combat."
In June, Gen. Peter Pace, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said re-enlistment rates are high.
"Those who are in uniform serving this country get it," Pace said. "They understand what they're doing; they understand the value."
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS contributed to this report.
Contact Ria Megnin at rmegnin@gannett.com.
Ellie
Group says students need truth about joining military
By RIA MEGNIN
The Salinas Californian
The Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines are having trouble attracting recruits.
Peace activists hope to keep it that way.
The all-volunteer armed services are suffering manpower strains because of the simultaneous conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army has been particularly hurt by mounting U.S. casualties - more than 1,700 in Iraq alone - a toll that might be discouraging young people from enlisting.
"With the war going on right now, there's a lot of challenge," said Army Sgt. Joseph Mees, a recruiter at the Seaside Army Recruiting Station. "Family, media, everybody wants to run and hide. But (recruits) are still coming in."
Bob Fitch of the Santa Cruz Resource Center for Non-Violence, who led a counter-recruitment workshop Saturday in Salinas, said most recruits believe the military is their only option.
"Recruiters go after vulnerable kids: the ones with no jobs, no hope, no money for college and no personal identity," Fitch said.
Mees said it's not true that the Army targets students from low-income or minority backgrounds.
"We're looking anywhere, everywhere for qualified
recruits," he said. "It's not for everybody. But we're trying to provide them with all the info so they can make an educated decision."
At Saturday's workshop, about 20 volunteers discussed how to make sure Monterey County high school and college students get "all the information."
"A number of us are ex-teachers, and we're here because we don't want to see our former students used as cannon fodder," said Jeanne Turner of Monterey, a retired elementary school teacher.
Activists said students have other options, and that the military can't match the college scholarships, wages, travel or service opportunities available in the private sector.
Opting out
A provision in the federal No Child Left Behind Act requires that high schools provide contact information for all juniors and seniors, both male and female, to military recruiters. Before the law was signed in 2002, Pentagon officials said, about 12 percent of the nation's public schools refused to turn over student records to military recruiters.
Public affairs officer John Heil of the Sacramento Army Recruiting Center said access to student lists is essential.
"Across the nation, we need another 80,000 soldiers for the active Army, and 22,175 for the reserve," Heil said. "(With the lists), we may reach a person who may never have heard about what we offer."
Parents can sign opt-out forms, but local activists say schools aren't doing enough to inform them of that right.
Saturday's volunteers hope to get other school districts to follow the lead of the Pajaro Valley Unified School District board, which voted this spring to have opt-out notices appear on school emergency cards.
The Pajaro Valley district encompasses the northern fringe of Monterey County and Watsonville and Aptos in Santa Cruz County.
At least one Pajaro Valley school board member might resign over the decision. Trustee Evelyn Volpa, whose son serves in the Air Force, said the opt-out notice is anti-military.
Carole Erickson of the Peace Coalition of Monterey County said that is not the thinking behind local efforts.
"We're not saying, 'Don't sign up for the Army.' We're saying, be aware of what you're doing and know the alternatives," Erickson said.
Activists say recruiters mislead minority and low-income students with inflated promises of college money and career preparation.
"I saw a lot of recruitment in high school," said Hartnell College student Edward Lopez, 24, of Soledad, who attended the workshop. "They weren't telling you the full story, the chance of actual conflict. They just focused on the scholarships, the job training."
"They don't tell you you get more money through financial aid than you ever will from the Army," said Susan Courrejou of Salinas, a 54-year-old Soledad teacher. "Recruitment signs are about travel and job training, but when I think of the emotional damage when a young man comes out, I think there's got to be other ways."
Mees said recruiters are required to talk about the possibility of being sent to a war zone.
"It's called 'the Armed Forces' for a reason," he said. "But most (recruits) never see combat."
In June, Gen. Peter Pace, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said re-enlistment rates are high.
"Those who are in uniform serving this country get it," Pace said. "They understand what they're doing; they understand the value."
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS contributed to this report.
Contact Ria Megnin at rmegnin@gannett.com.
Ellie