Soldiers' Children Mistreated and the Ban on ROTC

As someone with strongly conflicted feelings on the coming conflict with Iraq, I have respect for all on both sides of the issue who are conducting this dialogue with thoughtfulness and intelligence.

For these people, I have no respect. Winds of Change has very comprehensive coverage of a story about teachers in Maine taunting the children of soldiers deployed overseas.

Unfortunately, I cannot say I am surprised by these incidents. They likely stem from the same misguided anti-military prejudice that some people cannot separate from their feelings about war, the Bush Administration, or Vietnam. I never experienced first-hand attacks like those felt by the young children in Maine, but I have crossed paths with institutional anti-military prejudice.

As a Harvard student, I had to come to terms with the fact that my university forbade my Army ROTC program from openly recruiting or organizing on school property. September 11, 2001, was fall registration day at Harvard. I first heard the day's terrible news at the activities fair, where I was representing an umbrella organization set up to allow informational distribution about the ROTC programs at MIT. I was not allowed to wear my uniform. No active-duty officers were allowed to represent the organization.

In December, as our troops were doing battle in Afghanistan, I joined several fellow cadets in setting up a table with Christmas cards to the troops which Harvard students could sign, and which we would mail. An admirable number of students signed the cards. An unfortunate number laughed, scoffed, mocked, or made disrespectful comments.

I was 21 at the time, well-educated, and able to recognize this anti-military prejudice for what it was. I doubt the young children in Maine are able to do the same, and it makes their teachers' behavior even less forgivable.