YouthSpeaksOut! 2/26/06 Military Recruiters

YouthSpeaksOut! is a monthly one hour program featuring high school students in Mendocino County. This months topic was military recruiting on campus, and careers in the military. The 3 Laytonville High students discuss the subjects for half of the show, then call-ins from the community. 60 minutes. Visit our website www.youthspeaksout.net for many hours of streaming audio. Originally aired on KZYX/Z, 2/26/06, Mendocino County Public Broadcast. Produced by Dan Roberts

YouthSpeaksOut! is a monthly one hour program featuring high school students in Mendocino County. This months topic was military recruiting on campus, and careers in the military. The 3 Laytonville High students discuss the subjects for half of the show, then call-ins from the community. 60 minutes. Visit our website www.youthspeaksout.net for many hours of streaming audio. Originally aired on KZYX/Z, 2/26/06, Mendocino County Public Broadcast. Produced by Dan Roberts

Dear Radio Friend,
Tonight our topic is "Military Recruiting In Our Schools, and is There A Draft In Our Future?" As the so-called "War on Terror" continues to expand, the need for new military recruits increases. High Schools and colleges have traditionally been the most effective source of young enlistees for the military. Students are met by recruiters on campus, and offered funds for college education, career training, and an opportunity to travel.
The citizens of San Francisco passed a resolution last fall which urges the banning of military recruiters from San Francisco's public schools and universities. The measure only expresses the will of the people of San Francisco and has no legal ramifications because the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 prohibits the distribution of federal funds to schools that ban military recruiters- also the Solomon Amendment, a Federal law currently under Supreme Court challenge, withholds federal funds from universities that ban military recruiters.
Military recruiters offer education to students, yet 2/3s of all recruits never get any college funding from the military. Recruiters offer job training to students yet veterans are 2 to 5 times as likely to end up homeless. Recruiters target poor people, people of color, and immigrants seeking citizenship. Recruiters do not mention the health hazards of military service or the death rates of those in combat. Nor do they point out the difficulties veterans have in trying to receive services after discharge.
In Mendocino County military recruiters were charged last year with supplying alcohol and drugs to minors, and told some female candidates that they must have sex with them to be accepted. These Marine recruiters then had sex with several 17 year olds and were found guilty of the charges- though only one was fined, lowered in rank, and not removed from the service. Young women in the military are often the victims of sexual harassment.
These are some of the topics we'll discuss tonight on YouthSpeaksOut! We hope that you are interested in these subjects and will want to participate.
!FurthuR! Dan Roberts

"The American people need to know the truth. The American people need to see the truth. In a democracy, letting the people know the truth is the essence of what it means to be free."
- Barbara Boxer