There has been a lot of grumbling lately concerning Worcester's support of the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps program. This is a youth program funded by various military branches in addition to the school district, but is administered by the public schools. It's an elective course and does not exempt students from fulfilling the gym requirement (Noting in Worcester will ever exempt you from the gym requirement, but that is a completely different issue). The program has been around for a long time and is well established in the Worcester Community, with Air Force units located at South High and Burncoat High and a Navy unit situated at North High.
Often people confuse JROTC with college ROTC units and automatically conjure up images of the Vietnam era Kent State riots. The programs are completely different. First off JROTC is in no way connected with recruitment into the armed services. JROTC is not a binding contract. You can take it for one year, you can take it for two, three or four, or you can even only take it for a quarter and drop the class if you don't like the program. The best part of it is that you are not committed to join the military in college. JROTC and ROTC are not train ties on a railroad to combat. If you want to join the military you will get credit in ROTC for being in JROTC but you do not have to go that route if you don't choose. Students enrolled in JROTC still have the ability to face that glorious railroad known as "the rest of your life." JROTC cadets are the conductors of their own futures; they get to choose which section of rail to ride on.
Recently a pacifist group has raised arms (no pun intended) about JROTC programs as being contributors to this nation's militaristic tendencies. They fear that these classes are teaching students to follow all orders administered and to never question authority. In other words they see these classes as the propaganda arm of the right wing.
In this day in age where the government lies to the people and wars are fought over oil (John McCain said it first!), some people may draw the conclusion that this group did. However the conclusion is only assumption and conjecture; in other words their claims are not valid.
Before I begin to address the claims let me give the readers some background information. I oppose the War in Iraq. I cringe when I think of the Bush Administration. I am a card carrying member of the American Civil Liberties Union. I also was a cadet in South High AFJROTC unit.
So let's get this out of the way right now. If JROTC was the government manipulator 1984-esq type of organization that the groups have categorized it as would some one of my background actually willingly switch electives to join it? I think not.
So what is JROTC actually about? The only military components of the programs are that students must wear uniforms once a week, participate in drill exercises, and have the option of joining after school activities such as jet (drill) team to compete for trophies, just like an athletic team. Also the units participate in local parades and get judged on performance.
The program focuses a lot on academics. Many of the awards such as ribbons or medals are based on performance in the classroom. At South the AFJROTC unit even has a section called the Kitty Hawk Air Society which is very similar to the National Honor Society in its membership qualifications. Students who do not make certain grades are not allowed to participate in corps wide field trips and the KHAS even offers a tutoring programs.
What lessons are taught in a JROTC class? Astronomy, survival techniques, rocket building, nonviolent approaches to confrontation, health issues, drug and alcohol addiction awareness, and even career awareness. No lessons were on weaponry, military history, battle tactics, patriotic interpretations, or combat methods. Community service was even emphasized and the unit organized a variety of initiatives and projects. Sounds like a pretty progressive program to me.
JROTC does a lot for the students who participate in the program. For some it offers a place to build character, take responsibility, and to experience a leadership position. For others it serves as a place to bond, learn about others, and to see what can happen when people band together for a common cause. America has turned its back on its communal roots established by the Pilgrims and Puritans at Massachusetts Bay and have focused more on an individualistic society in which everyone is only concerned for their own well being and could give tow stones in a pot about their neighbor. JROTC is the opportunity for students to freely express themselves and to comprehend that despite their differences they have something that unites them. In the uniform everyone looks the same. In the uniform everyone looks the same. In my opinion this is symbolic of the fact that we are all humans and that we are all inherently equal. That's the essence of the progressive way, and that is why it is in the best interests of our school system to maintain JROTC programs.
Never once in a JROTC class room have I ever heard an instructor ever make a political comment. Some of the individual students would voice their own political thoughts, yet no one would criticize them for thinking freely and questioning the status quo. There is a comment I remember fondly from one of my instructors; "Don't hate the soldier, hate the war." That is what is happening in this situation. There is so much outrage over the war in Iraq, over the abuses at Guantanamo, over the unconstitutional Patriot Act that the outrage is being channeled towards JROTC and the military as a whole. The real entity deserving of this outrage is George W. Bush. The real entity deserving of this outrage is the Congress that has not taken a firm stance to end the War. The real entity deserving of the outrage are the contractors who are making profits off of the deaths of our troops. Those are the entities that should be ridiculed, not JROTC.
JROTC should be praised for all of the positive contributions it has made in the Worcester community and all of it has done for the youth who have been cadets. About 1-2% of high school cadets actually choose to continue ROTC in high school. Most importantly JROTC shows you how a responsible military should act, thus enabling them to have the knowledge and background to question combat related actions and to call the government out on its bluff. If more citizens had participated in JROTC in high school, the War in Iraq never would have happened.
"Don't hate the soldier, hate the war." If you are outraged about our nation's education system don't hate JROTC, hate NCLB.