The National Network Opposing the Militarization of Youth (NNOMY)

Articles

10 Ways to Protect Your Child From the ASVAB

Dr. Teresa Whitehurst

"Many parents have experienced the eerie intuition that tells them their child is in danger."

 https://nnomy.org/ASVAB

Dr. Teresa Whitehurst -

"Mom, there's this test we're supposed to take tomorrow," my daughter told me one night last year, "but I have a funny feeling about it. Our guidance counselor came in and said that the school would be giving all juniors a special career-aptitude test, to show us where our talents are. It sounded good, but then a military recruiter came in and said that this test, called the ASVAB, could help us choose the best career path."


"He said, 'any personal information will be kept strictly confidential.' I asked if the military would keep our names and numbers, and he just repeated that it's 'confidential.' That was when I knew something was wrong – why make such a big deal about getting our personal information, unless that's the point of the whole thing?"

Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night

Linda Pershing, with Lara Bell

The Tragic Death of Brian Arredondo

Linda Pershing, with Lara Bell -

Double tragedy: Marine Lance Corporal Alexander Arredondo (left) was killed in Iraq in 2004. His brother Brian took his own life last month after struggling to deal with his elder brother’s death Grief: Brian Arredondo (left) joins his father Carlos as they attend a memorial for his brother Alexander who was killed in the Iraq war. Brian took his own life just before ChristmasBrian Arredondo never really recovered from his brother’s death in the Iraq War. When they were kids, Brian adored his older brother Alexander and tagged along with him whenever he could. They were often seen playing together in parks and schoolyards in communities surrounding Boston, Massachusetts, and Bangor, Maine, where they grew up.

As teens the two boys were perfect targets for military recruiters: first-generation Americans on their father’s side (he emigrated from Costa Rica), working-class youth (Alex attended a technical high school where much of the curriculum focuses on job training), living with their mother after their parents divorced when they were young. Promises of career training, male camaraderie and “becoming a man,” appeals to patriotism, a $10,000 signing bonus, and funding for college enticed Alex Arredondo to join the marines, just a month before September 11, 2011.

Teaching Children War

Jon Letman

Military Working Dog (MWD) gives chase with bullet proof vest attached to a camera package on back. (PHOTO: Rebecca Frankel)Jon Letman - Last week, just before Veterans Day, my seven-year-old son, a second grader at a public school on Kauai, brought home an issue of Scholastic News.

The cover of the four-page kid's newspaper pictured a German shepherd wearing a black military vest as it bounded through churning water. The headline read "Soldiers Make a Splash."

The accompanying mini-feature explained how Veterans Day is when we “honor our armed forces [and the dogs that protect them].” The story showed a dog in mid-air harnessed to a paratrooper with the caption: “Parachuting dogs aren’t scared of heights. They just enjoy the ride.” The story said that dogs can also be soldiers and carry cameras to take secret photos.

One of the other two stories told of young girls who hug and cuddle “Daddy Dolls” when they miss their father, a helicopter pilot, who “went to war last year” and “had to be away from his family for a long time.” The other story was a lesson about tying yellow ribbons.

This material taught my son learned that soldiers go overseas to fight wars, dogs like jumping out of airplanes as well as new vocabulary like "stealth," "military," and "abroad."

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