Misconception: Bringing ROTC back to Campus would help combat discrimination through "infiltration."
Reality: No one has to JOIN a discriminatory organization to fight discrimination
VOTE NO ON ROTC
vote no on discrimination
We have the right to make our military reflect our values, not the values
that have dominated in the last years. While we would not call it
"infiltration," military officers who are educated in an environment like
Columbia can impact the tone and experiences in the military. Consider the
difference in coming out to your commander if he or she was educated at
Columbia, in comparison to more conservative environments.
Indeed, no one has to join a discriminatory organization to fight
discrimination. Yet 65,000 gays and lesbians
chose to join the military despite DADT. As Scott Stewart GS '09
testifies, "I
joined the Army as an infantry soldier in order to fight DADT. I succeed by
making my fellow soldiers and commanding officers aware that a good soldier is
not a monopoly owned solely by straight soldiers. I want nothing more than to
get rid of DADT. Look, change is never easy, but make no mistake, it is worth
the sacrifices. Change begins with education, and education only comes through a
willingness to sit down and discuss the issues, to face it head on. Simply
saying we don't want ROTC here does little more than remove that willingness."
Analysis and photo by Columbia Students for NROTC.