As a Lieutenant in the United States Navy Reserve, I am required to serve in an active military capacity one weekend per month and two weeks per year. During times of crisis, I can be called to go to war in places like Iraq and Afghanistan. While I have not been sent to a war zone, I have been to other hot spots around the world, such as post-tsunami Indonesia, where I was part of a humanitarian relief effort. Serving in thhe Navy has been an extremely rewarding experience for me, as it has been for many others.
How does this connect to issues in DC? Sometimes, the military may be one of the only ways out for kids living in dire circumstances. While many youth in DC have fractured families and are surrounded by guns, drugs and crime, the military offers them a way to travel, become better educated, learn discipline and organizational skills, and perhaps pick up a trade that can be of value in the civilian world. In many ways, the military can harness young energy in a positive way that can turn lives around.
The war in Iraq has tainted the reputation of the military, despite the hard work and dedication of our young men and women in uniform. But let's remember that the military has been around since before our nation was born, and it has fostered some of the most well respected leaders in the history of our nation. Most of our Presidents have been in the military and so have many successful CEOs, writers and other outstanding citizens. The military is not the solution for everyone, but for some of our city's youth, it may just well be. I am proud to serve my country in the United States Navy and I know that many other DC residents are as well.
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The society's perception of the military has a great effect on not only those serving in the military, but also people who are about to join. When I was a Freshman attending Georgetown, I was also a cadet in the Army Reserve Officer Training Course (ROTC) Program. I had grown up as a military brat, living in mostly military installations all over the world. It was a wake up call when I moved to DC and wore my Army uniform for the first time...I recall during my first military ceremony (Pass In Review), we had a group of demonstrators who had come on campus to disrupt our event. Though I can't recall whether the issue was war or gays in the military, it was the first time I felt the contentiousness of what I was about to get into. I may not have personnally done anything (I wasn't even in the military yet!), but wearing the uniform made me somehow culpable. The ceremony continued as the band drowned out the protestors' clamoring. Strangely, all of us left the field feeling more determined and sure that America is a great country--because we would one day be fighting for the freedoms that the very protestors were enjoying.
I'm now pushing my 7th year in the US Army and couldn't be prouder of what my brothers and sisters in arms are doing everyday.
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