Debra Sweet | December, 19 2022
Read messages from the veterans who do We Are Not Your Soldiers presentations:John Burns
One of the most telling quotes I remember being told when I first joined was “You get to travel to distant and exotic places, meet interesting and exciting people, and then kill them.” It goes without saying this shouldn’t be something we aspire to. Since I have been alive, we have never not been in a war. Is this what progress looks like?
Joy Damiani
Working with We Are Not Your Soldiers has given me the opportunity to share my perspectives with students who have been targeted by the same kind of misleading military recruiters who targeted me as a teenager. Taking young people’s questions and hearing their concerns about the army continuously challenges me to see my experiences through their eyes, and I feel fortunate to have the chance to engage with them through such a consistently supportive and constructive organization.
Rosa del Duca
We Are Not Your Soldiers offers vital narratives of military service not often heard in mainstream America. The veterans who donate their time share important stories of standing up to the war machine, scrutinizing blind obedience to a deeply flawed system, and celebrating peacemakers. Crucial food for thought as the U.S. military continues to aggressively recruit teenagers.
Will Griffin
Students can read as many books as they want to try to understand U.S.-led wars of aggression, but to have an actual participant share their personal experiences brings that experience straight to the students who are reading about it. There is no other organization connecting veterans with students.
Miles Megaciph
We Are Not Your Soldiers has given purpose to a part of my life that otherwise made no sense to me. I joined the Marine Corps in 1992, directly out of high school, because I believed it would prepare me for adult life. Today, thanks to individual donations and brave teachers, I get to share my truths from the military with young people; the way I wished I could have heard way back when. I know I cannot get my childhood back but I believe that sharing my trauma will help others from losing theirs.
Lyle Jeremy Rubin
So much of everyday life in the United States is defined by its militarism and empire. Yet sustained discussions about U.S. militarism and empire are rare if not altogether absent among the public. We Are Not Your Soldiers serves to fill that gap by bringing disillusioned veterans like me into the classroom, and I cannot emphasize enough how crucial this service is, and how much we’d appreciate your support.
Joe Urgo
I like working with We Are Not Your Soldiers because I can challenge the students to learn for themselves the actual history of what the US military has done in the world. I call on them to not enlist in the war machine, to not become a killer for profit and empire. I also want them to think about a moral standard that sees the people of the world as “our people,” not our enemies to be bombed, invaded, killed. Stop thinking like an American. Start thinking about humanity!
Miguel Gabriel Vázquez
I was attracted to We Are Not Your Soldiers because it stands for the principles of peaceful co-existence. By donating to this worthy organization, you will actually be contributing to the principles of world peace.
