COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Counter-Recruitment: General
Can Your Town Ban the Military from Recruiting Anyone Under 18?
David Swanson, Op-Ed News
February 5, 2008
Of course, Americans must be 18 to serve in the military, but much of
the military's recruiting work is directed at those who have not yet turned 18.
According to Dave Meserve in Arcata, Calif., localities can avoid the
consequences of the No Child Left Behind law (which turns students'
names and contact information over to recruiters) not only by helping
students and parents to opt out of recruitment lists or by
challenging the ability of recruiters to be on school campuses, but
also by prohibiting any recruiting activities that involve kids under 18.
Meserve has drafted an ordinance and submitted it to the city clerk
and the city attorney in Arcata. They will have 15 days to review it
and provide a title and ballot summary for the November 2008 ballot.
Then Meserve can begin gathering signatures to get it on the ballot.
Why not do the same thing in your town or major city? Here's the
draft ordinance:
ARCATA YOUTH PROTECTION ACT
AN ORDINANCE TO PROHIBIT THE MILITARY RECRUITMENT OF ANY PERSON UNDER
THE AGE OF EIGHTEEN
To protect the welfare of our youth, the People of Arcata Ordain as Follows:
No person who is employed by or an agent of the United States
government shall, within the City of Arcata, in the execution of his
or her job duties, recruit, initiate contact with for the purpose of
recruiting, or promote the future enlistment of any person under the
age of eighteen into any branch of the United States Armed Forces.
Authority:
This Ordinance is adopted and enacted pursuant to the authority
guaranteed to the people of Arcata by the California Constitution
(Article 2, Section1) and the U.S. Constitution (Amendments IX and X)
which guarantee political power to the people and recognize the right
to exercise that power through initiative and referendum (California
Constitution Article 4, Section I).
Findings
1) Military Recruiters Target Teens.
Military recruiters target teens through ad campaigns, mailings,
telephone calls, email, and direct personal contact. They promote
enlistment by glorifying military service and exaggerating the
educational and career benefits, while ignoring the dangers.
Recruiters are rewarded for meeting enlistment quotas and risk
reassignment if quotas are not met. College and business recruiters
lack equivalent resources and incentives to promote non-military
careers to teens.
2) People under the age of eighteen are not permitted to vote.
As a society, we believe that people under eighteen lack the life
experience to make informed choices; they cannot vote, sign
contracts, or make medical and other legal decisions. Although people
under eighteen cannot enlist in the military without parental
consent, sixteen- and seventeen-year- olds in our community are
routinely urged by recruiters to commit themselves to future
enlistment after their eighteenth birthdays. Those who do enlist in
the military may be ordered to participate in actions that violate
Constitutional and International Law including bombings of civilian
targets, invasions and occupations of sovereign nations, or illegal
detention and mistreatment of suspected terrorists. Young soldiers
risk their lives and sanity without a developed ability to comprehend
the consequences of their actions. Unlike civilian employees,
military enlistees may be prosecuted and imprisoned if they refuse to
obey an order, or if they change their minds and want to quit their
jobs in the military. If we believe that people under the age of
eighteen lack the experience and maturity necessary for voting, then
they should not be subjected to the highly sophisticated and
well-funded efforts of military recruiters to enlist them in the armed forces.
3) The First Amendment protects the free speech of people, not the government.
While some may argue that recruiting is "speech" protected by the
First Amendment, the Bill of Rights protects the rights of people
from the excesses of government.
4) This Ordinance does not violate provisions of No Child Left Behind.
The No Child Left Behind Act (PL 117-110, Section 9528.3) mandates
that: "Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this
Act shall provide military recruiters the same access to secondary
school students as is provided generally to post secondary
educational institutions or to prospective employers of those
students." This Ordinance is to be approved by the voters, not by any
local educational agency. Under the Ordinance, schools may still
provide access to military recruiters, but recruiters are prohibited
from recruiting or promoting the future enlistment of any person
under the age of eighteen.
Specific Purpose:
The specific purpose of this Ordinance is to protect youth under the
age of eighteen from military recruiting.
Statement of Law:
No person who is employed by or an agent of the United States
government shall, within the City of Arcata, in the execution of his
or her job duties, recruit, initiate contact with for the purpose of
recruiting, or promote the future enlistment of any person under the
age of eighteen into any branch of the United States Armed Forces.
Nothing in this Ordinance shall prevent any person from voluntarily
visiting a military recruitment office or specifically initiating a
request to meet with a recruiter.
Nothing in this Ordinance shall prevent individuals who are not
employed by or agents of the U.S. government from encouraging people
under the age of eighteen to join the military.
Enforcement
The City of Arcata shall inform all local military recruiters and
their commanding officers of this Ordinance, which prohibits military
recruiting of any person under the age of eighteen within the City of
Arcata. Any military recruiter who violates this Ordinance, as well
as his or her commanding officer, shall be held responsible for said
violation. Both shall be deemed guilty of an infraction and shall be
subject to the penalties stated in the Arcata Municipal Code. (A.M.C.
I-3-1200) A citizen complaint of any unsolicited military recruiting
activity involving people under the age of eighteen shall initiate
investigation and possible citation by the Arcata Police Department
for violation of this Ordinance. If recruiters violate this Ordinance
five or more times within one month, military recruiting of persons
under the age of eighteen shall be deemed a public nuisance and shall
be summarily abated.
(A.M.C. I-3-1201)
Severability
The provisions of this Ordinance are severable. If any section or
provision of this Ordinance is determined to be illegal, invalid or
unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, such decision
of the court shall not affect or invalidate any of the remaining
sections or provisions of this Ordinance. It is the express intent of
the people of Arcata, California that this Ordinance would have been
adopted if such illegal, invalid, or unconstitutional section or
provision had not been included.
Effective Date
This Ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days after adoption by
the voters.
Interpretation
In the event this Ordinance requires interpretation (by courts,
county officials, or anyone else), it is the express intent of the
people of Arcata that this Ordinance be construed in such a manner to
carry out the original intent of this Initiative, which is to
prohibit military recruitment of any person under the age of eighteen
within the City of Arcata.
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