From Draft NOtices, October—December 2011
— David Morales
In February of 2009, Mission Bay High School students, parents, teachers, and community members waited anxiously and well into a Tuesday night for the decision by the San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) Board to finally restrict the JROTC program. It did so by passing a policy banning JROTC rifle ranges and marksmanship training in the district.
Before that night, students had proven that JROTC programs across the district were leading students to falsely believe that the program would grant them credit that could be counted toward college acceptance. In addition, it was documented that students were sometimes being placed into JROTC without their or their parents’ consent, violating California Education Code section 51750. These complaints were addressed without school board action in 2008 when the superintendent issued a directive banning both practices.
The Education Not Arms Coalition (ENAC), a group consisting of students, teachers and several community organizations, made these victories possible. It’s an achievement that is significant for taking place in one of the country’s most militarized cities. Since the restrictions were approved, they appear to be having a direct impact on at least one school, Mission Bay High, where JROTC is entering its fifth year with shrinking enrollment numbers.
However, students, parents, and other activists fear that the restrictions won in late 2008 may be violated by those who are desperate to increase JROTC enrollment. Department of Defense guidelines state that when enrollment in a JROTC unit drops below a specified minimum during its second year (third if it’s a new unit), it must be placed on probation. If under-enrollment continues the next year, the unit is required to be disestablished at the end of the school year.
Committee Opposed to Militarism and the Draft (COMD)
From Draft NOtices, October—December 2011
— Miriam Clark
Some technology can have disastrous long-term consequences, especially when developed for war or as a spin-off from weaponry. One example, nuclear power, has proven to be dangerous and not well understood by the public. The world is now dealing with some of its lethal manifestations in Fukushima Japan. That disaster is now over six months old. The power plant says they may have the fires in the reactors out by January of 2012, but there is no cleanup plan for the contaminated earth or resettlement of 200,000 evacuated people. In eight weeks fallout from the disaster reached the northwestern coast of the U.S., and CounterPunch reported significant fallout in Portland, Tacoma, Seattle and Spokane. Wind carries the fallout around the world and rain brings it down wherever it falls.
Nuclear is something we know about, but another example of a dangerous technology that has drawn very little public attention is the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP), a joint project of the United States Air Force and Navy in Alaska. Based on the theories of physicist Nicola Tesla, it is designed to study the ionosphere in order to develop weapons technology. The program is referred to as a "Star Wars" weapon and is intended to provide a shield against incoming missiles.
From Draft NOtices, July—September 2011
— Paula Hoffman-Villanueva
On April 2, 2011, I accompanied seven students from Mission Bay High School in San Diego who traveled by train to the California Teachers’ Association (CTA) statewide convention in Los Angeles. The purpose of their trip was to receive an award given by the Peace and Justice Caucus of the CTA to their school’s chapter of MEChA, a student organization with roots in the Chicano political movement of the 1960s. The award included a plaque that reads: "For Outstanding Commitment to Peace, Social Justice and The Empowerment of Youth."
When presenting the MEChA members with their award, Andy Griggs, the caucus co-chair, told the audience that these students had achieved something incredible: at their young age, they were able to bring about important changes to school district policies. He was referring to several victories in the San Diego Unified School District. They included closing down the district’s eleven JROTC shooting ranges, imposing strict limitations on military recruiting in all San Diego schools, and reinforcing the need for parent consent before students enroll in JROTC. None of these achievements would have been possible without the students, who spoke at school board meetings, rallied supporters outside of district offices, helped form a new coalition (Education Not Arms), petitioned the community and conducted important outreach and education with their peers.
Ninth CIRCUIT COURT RULING: CONFRONTING MILITARISM BY USING EQUAL ACCESS TO HIGH SCHOOLS
When the military comes to your local high school, you have a legal right to give students an opposing view. This has been the position taken by federal district courts in Florida, Pennsylvania and Illinois and two federal appellate courts. The most broadly-worded decision came from a case that COMD took to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the 1980s. Here is the background:
