Thank you!
Accessibility Notice
This post was created on the previous version of the MRFF website, and may not be fully accessible to users of assistive technology. If you need help accessing this content, please reach out via email.I was just having a conversation with my nearly 40 year old son who served in Iraq. Sadly, his experiences have colored his views of ‘all Muslims’ as extremists. I am not a member of any particular faith and support the rights of people to worship (or not) the God of their choosing and follow whatever religion they choose so long as it is not hurting others.
I am wondering-do soldiers receive some sort of indoctrination of intolerance? It has been so disheartening to witness this change in my son when he didn’t have the hateful feelings before. I love him and am proud that he is serving his country but it seems he is missing part of the point-that when you serve you are standing up for all of our citizens-regardless of their race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc.
Can you give me advice on how to cope with this change in my son-or what I may share with him to perhaps help him open his heart again?
Thank you for this work that you are doing. It is quite heartening!
(name withheld)
Dear (name withheld),
Thanks very much for your message. As Mr. Weinstein is very busy protecting the freedom of thought and religion of our military men and women, he asked me to to respond and tell you that we certainly understand and share your concern.
It’s hard to know just what experience or combination of experiences may have had the impact on your son that you describe, but it is very troubling indeed.
Unfortunately, the experience of being in combat is horrifying and can, in and of itself be destructive of one’s belief in the value of oneself and others, resulting in a fearful distrust of humanity in general, but especially those who are “different.” As I’m sure you’re aware, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an ugly reality in our society today, afflicting many of the young men and women who have returned from warfare. Fortunately it has become much better understood and treatment for it is offered, both by ad-hoc veterans groups and by the Veterans Administration. If you have not, I hope you’ll see if you can find a group that offers such services in your area of the country. If you have no luck in your search, please get back to me and I’ll see if I can be helpful.
Sadly, the anger and bitterness your son is exhibiting can also be the result of the kind of indoctrination troops go through under the command of superiors who have been known to use the worst kinds of harangues to gin up an emotional charge in their troops. Some of it can be simply straightforwardly racist, urging death to all of those deemed “enemy,” and identifying them by using racial stereotypes which are unlikely to discriminate between fighting forces and innocent civilians, including women and children. Another terrible tactic sometimes used by superiors to build up an emotional wall in their troops and fill them with passionate hatred is to assert that “God is on our side” against the evil enemy, identifying them as ungodly or God-haters or infidels. There was one instance of a military officer who denounced Islam and asserted that “our God is bigger than yours.” This sort of thing happens, unfortunately, more often than we Americans understand. Even some chaplains, as I understand it, in a perverse attempt to justify a trooper’s need to kill, use religious rhetoric that suggests we’re on the side of the Lord.
One can’t know just what your son’s experience was unless he’ll unburden himself of it, but your concern is legitimate and I urge you to follow your instincts and see if you can’t encourage him to take part in some of the counseling or group services that are available for veterans today.
All of us at the MRFF wish you and your son well.
Best,
Mike Farrell
(MRFF Board of Advisors)
Dear (name withheld),
I am a retired Navy Officer and worked for a veteran-centric non-profit as an AmeriCorps volunteer. If you are unfamiliar with AmeriCorps, think of the Peace Corps, but within the U.S. and with many different missions. I currently serve as the director of volunteers and interns for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation.
The subset of AmeriCorps that I was part of is called the Veteran Leader Corps. Part of our tasking was to build what is called the Community Blueprint. In a nutshell, it’s a network of different agencies, community groups, non-profits, etc. to help veterans with any number of issues. If you can let me know approximately where your son lives, I’ll reach out to them and see if they can provide any help.
I recommend that your son reach out to a group called Still Serving Veterans, where I used to work. Though based in Alabama, they have helped veterans across the nation. Also, they never charge a veteran a dime for any of the services that they provide. They have trained VA counselors who are great in helping veterans get the benefits that they have earned through their service to our nation. They can be reached at www.stillservingveterans.org or 256-883-7035.
I wish all the best for you and your son and please let him know that there are veterans out there who understand, have “been there, done that” and are willing to help.
John E. Inman
Director of Volunteers and Interns
Military Religious Freedom Foundation
256-715-9626 (w)
256-704-6002 (f)
www.mrff.org
[email protected]
Recent Posts
One Comment
Comments are closed.
The reality on the ground in a theater of war can sometimes snap the delusional and insulated view of the world that most Americans receive. Any serious inquiry into Islam will reveal the exhortation towards jihad and the suppression of “infidels” and “unbelievers.”
The cold hard facts are that the muslim local populaces harbor and provide material support to the extremists and terrorists who conduct attacks. For if you had a largely “peaceful” muslim populace, committed to the rule of law and the equal treatment for all, you would not see the harboring of the terrorist networks amongst their ranks, and they would be purged from the rest of their civilization. But, sadly this is not the case.
The responses to this original message are comprised of largely ignorant assumptions as to how we conduct the war on terror. The Rules of Engagement are so strict, and troops held to such a high standard, that they are regularly investigated, prosecuted for merely fighting back against the enemy if it were deemed the “incorrect manner.”
This hate organization has an insidious mission to demonize our troops and depict them as heartless radicals and idealogues, hell-bent on destruction, when exactly the opposite is true.
Learn a little about Islam yourself, and research the many networks, including the Muslim Brotherhood, that are deeply entwined within most countries, whose sole goal is to overthrow Western Civilization and erect another Islamic Caliphate, Sharia Law included.
People can make moral equivalency arguments towards the muslim community, but they are indoctrinated in radicalism from an early age in most third world muslim countries. This organization is so backwards targeting Christian dry erase board quotes, while ignoring the terrible apartheid, mutilation, and oppression that occurs in most muslim societies in the name of Islam.
This organization does not live in the real world. It is shameful that people waste their time attacking our troops in this manner.