Students Seek the Truth Behind the Camouflage

September 5 - 11, 2007 by Maya Harris, The Post Newspaper

You may have seen the ads. Some make military life look like a physical fitness or paint-ball adventure in the wild. Others simulate video game graphics to depict boot camp. They have a special demographic target: youth.

The government is now spending more than a billion dollars in military recruitment. According to the most recent Congressional Budget Office estimate, more than $700 million of that goes to advertising alone.

That's a lot of public money on its own terms. But, to put it in a broader context, according to a 2007 study by Advertising Age, that's also more than Nike, Wal-Mart, Mastercard and Coca-Cola spent on their advertising.

To scrutinize this billion-dollar drive, two-dozen teenagers from 20 Northern California high schools decided to become experts on military recruitment and service. They recently met with veterans, recruiters, and a conscientious objector, among others, and also undertook other activities including touring the Camp Pendleton Marine base.

The students were part of the ACLU of Northern California's Howard A. Friedman Youth Project 12th annual summer trip. Each year, students choose a different issue to investigate.

While they have yet to finalize their summary of the trip, which will include personal writings, art work, film and photographs, they've learned some striking facts. Trends suggest that California may be the "epicenter" for military recruitment, having the greatest number of youth between 15 and 24 years old. California ranks second among states where the Army finds the greatest number of new recruits, and Los Angeles County ranks first among all counties nationwide.

Under the federal "No Child Left Behind" Act, schools that receive federal dollars are obligated to turn over student contact information to military recruiters. "It seems recruiters had the run of the campus," complained Jacquieta Beverly, a 17-year-old recent graduate of Tennyson High School in Hayward who participated in the trip. "They had access to classes and followed students in the lunch room, offering to buy you snacks and stuff."

Aliesha Baldé, a 17-year-old student at Vallejo High School who also went on the trip, has been approached by recruiters several times. "They actually came to my home offering me all sorts of things, including money for college," she says.

Nationwide, African-American recruits are in decline, while Latino recruits are on the rise, as are the so-called "green-card soldiers" who are offered permanent residency status for joining the armed services.

If military recruiters seem desperate, there's a reason. While service in the all-volunteer military was once viewed as an attractive option by many young people - especially low-income youth - because of the financial resources provided for college, increasing skepticism about the Iraq War and the growing list of U.S. casualties have changed that. Public support for the Iraq War has plunged, with a majority of Americans now opposing the war.

So, now, the U.S. military appears to be stepping up recruitment to close the gap. Last month, the Army Times reported that the Army ordered a surge in recruiters to meet the largest shortfall in Army recruitment in recent years.

With the school year resuming, the students plan to speak in various Northern California high schools to spark discussions and help their peers make well-informed decisions. "I want to inform my classmates about the truth behind the promises," says Baldé. In these challenging times, this kind of inquisitive, inspired and informed youth leadership can give us all hope for the future.