COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Military Recruiting: JROTC/ROTC
Sexual misconduct unbecoming an officer
Shawn James Leavy, Big Island Weekly
August 8, 2007
A Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) teacher is awaitingdisciplinary judgment from the DOE and undergoing investigation by
county prosecutors for allegedly having sexual relations with a
Kealakehe High School student. The alleged contact was first reported
to law enforcement on April 10th. If proven true, the case at
Kealakehe will be marked as an extreme incident calling into question
the JROTC's unchecked access and influential presence within U.S.
public schools.
The Hawai`i County Office of the Prosecuting Attorney said they are
investigating the sexual misconduct case, but have yet to make any charges.
Hawai`i State Department of Education Office of Civil Rights
Compliance Director Susan Kitsu said the DOE's internal investigation
of the JROTC teacher has been referred to DOE Complex Area
Superintendent Art Souza and Kealakehe High Principal Wil Murakami
for disciplinary judgment. "I'm not sure where they're at," said Kitsu.
When asked what the status of the case is, Murakami said "the case is
closed," but later clarified that the DOE's investigation has been
completed. When asked what disciplinary action the DOE intends to
take, he said that decision will not be publicly released. "In the
DOE, any matter that is a personnel issue . . . with regards to the
result, that is kept confidential, " said Murakami.
Souza was off-island at a superintendent' s leadership retreat and was
unavailable for comment.
A July 25th West Hawai`i Today article on the incident did not
specifically mention or disclose that the teacher in question is
affiliated with the Army. In the article, Souza said "the
circumstances of the case may warrant the involvement of another
decision-making party," alluding that the case would require a
disciplinary judgment by the military.
The Kealakehe High School JROTC Department states its mission is "to
motivate young people to become better citizens, strengthen character
by teaching values associated with service life and develop
leadership potential." JROTC programs, which run through the Army,
Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, are taught as elective courses at
more than three thousand high schools nationwide. There are JROTC
units in 25 out of the 42 total Hawai`i Public High Schools. The
program is highly regarded by state lawmakers, who fund the program
with assistance from the federal Department of Defense. In June 2006,
Governor Linda Lingle lauded the program, saying "JROTC cadets are
our future leaders. They are role models for their peers and we hope
that they will continue to give back to the community."
In a 2003 funding appropriation by the state legislature for the
Kealakehe High JROTC, lawmakers stated "the legislature finds that
Congress established the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps
(JROTC) program in 1916 with the broad mandate to develop good
citizenship and responsibility in young people. JROTC courses are led
by active duty and retired military personnel who teach good
citizenship, personal responsibility, and service to country. Unlike
college-level ROTC programs, JROTC programs do not obligate
participating students to join the military. JROTC programs build
self-discipline, teamwork, motivation, and confidence in young
people, which decreases school-related disciplinary problems for many
participating students.
Kyle Kajihiro, director of the Hawai`i American Friend's Service
Committee, has a critical view of the program. He stated "JROTC is a
vehicle for grooming recruits and for propagating and normalizing
military ideology in our schools and community. It tends to
desensitize us to the organized violence that warfare represents."
Ret. Lt. Colonial Malakie of the Kealakehe High Army JROTC and Ret.
Lt. Commander Annette Schlegeimilch of the Waiakea High Navy JROTC
both stressed that their JROTC teaching is not a recruiting tool for
the military. Congressional records indicate otherwise.
For example, the Senate Armed Services Committee Report on the
National Defense Authorization Act for 2000, stated "the committee
recognizes that there is a direct relationship between the JROTC
program and recruitment. Strong testimony from the Joint Chiefs of
Staff this year confirmed this relationship. More than half of the
young men and women who voluntarily participate in this high school
program affiliate with the military in some fashion after graduation."
Before the Military Personnel Subcommittee House Committee on Armed
Services, commenting on sustaining the U.S.A.'s All-Volunteer Force,
Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Rudy De Leon
made the following direct statements.
"With regard to recruiting, surveys of Junior ROTC cadets indicate
that about 35 percent of the graduating high school seniors in School
Year 1997-98 with more than two years participation in the JROTC
program are interested in some type of military affiliation (active
duty enlistment, officer program participation, or service in the
Reserve or Guard). Translating this to hard recruiting numbers, in
FYs 1996-1999, about 8,000 new recruits per year entered active duty
after completing two years of Junior ROTC. The proportion of JROTC
graduates who enter the military following completion of high school
is roughly five times greater that the proportion of non-JROTC students."
In November of 2006, the San Francisco School Board voted to
eliminate JROTC from its city schools. Critics of the move, including
San Francisco's mayor, said it would cause the city to be identified
as disrespectful towards the sacrifices of men and women in uniform.
A credo posted on the Waiakea JROTC classroom wall, says, in
part:"This is my rifle. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
My rifle is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must
master my life. My rifle without me is useless. Without my rifle, I
am useless. I must fire my rifle true. I must shoot straighter than
my enemy who is trying to kill me. I must shoot him before he shoots
me . . . Before God I swear this creed. My rifle and myself are the
defenders of my country. We are the masters of our enemy. We are the
saviors of my life. So be it, until there is no enemy, but PEACE."
Kajihiro says that "the spread of military culture in our schools is
a big problem if we truly want to reduce violence in schools."
"Military discipline is based on a rigid hierarchy, an unquestioning
obedience to orders, and when this fails, intimidation and force.
Military culture is also charged with a highly aggressive masculinity
that tends to denigrate women. This feeds the high rates of sex
assault and domestic violence in the military."
Listeners to local radio station Da Beat 95.9 FM, or any other
youth-aimed program, often hear military recruitment ads that say,
"serve your country, get regular paychecks and earn money for college . . . "
In addressing the issue of potential sexual misconduct by its
teachers, the Marine Corps JROTC instructor's handbook states,
"instructors must, at all times, avoid any and all occasions of
fraternization with cadets, especially with the opposite sex.
Admiring cadets often idolize instructors as role models, and there
may be an occasion when a cadet attempts to be personal and
affectionate with an instructor. Any confirmed incident of an
improper relationship between an instructor and a cadet will be cause
for immediate de-certification from the Marine Corps JROTC program,
and may result in legal charges."
"The alleged sexual encounter between a student and a JROTC
instructor represents an abuse of power and is symptomatic of the
bigger problem of militarism," said Kajihiro. "Local school and
elected officials need to stop their uncritical deference to the
military and become stronger advocates of our youth and our community."
He continued "while we must hold the individual JROTC instructor
accountable . . . let's not lose sight of the larger systemic and
policy issues raised by this case."
This archive consists of a topically organized selection of
articles culled by members of the Counter-Recruitment List Serve from printed
publications and web sites. The archive is not complete. We have chosen
material relevant to the work of