General counter-recruitment/Truth in Recruitment youth education
Years in Operation: 11-20 years
Summary describing your organization: World Can’t Wait’s We Are Not Your Soldiers project brings Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans to classes to tell about the wars and what the military is recruiting for – information most have never been exposed to before. Often, we begin the presentation by showing a short video. Sometimes we use a version of “Collateral Murder” narrated by veteran Ethan McCord which contains footage, released by Chelsea Manning, of the Baghdad killing of Reuters journalists and others. Or we may show a clip from a feature film on a drone pilot stationed at a base here in the United States or another video. The veterans talk about their on-the-ground experiences in occupying countries, where civilians pay the price. In-service and post-service issues such PTSD, medical/psychological care or lack thereof and homelessness are also addressed as well as the realities of advertised benefits, such as college tuition. Students are provided with information and a perspective to which they may not otherwise be exposed. There is an additional possibility to do a historical presentation with a Vietnam military resister and/or veteran. This can be done in conjunction with the recent veteran’s class visit or separately.