[Marxism] S.F. school board makes shift in military strategy San Francisco Business Times

[Bonnie Weinstein <giobon@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

GET JROTC OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS! LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD OVER THE U.S.
MILITARY! WE ARE AN ANTIWAR CITY! WE WANT THE MILITARY OUT OF OUR SCHOOLS!

SPEAK OUT AT THE BOARD MEETING TONIGHT - TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 6:00 P.M.

555 Franklin Street, 1st Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
415/241-6427 or (415) 241-6493
(To get on the speaker¹s list, call the Monday before the meeting from 8:30
AM - 4:00 PM or Tuesday, the day of the meeting from 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM. You
will get at most, two minutes and most probably only one minute to speak.
BRING SIGNS! 

HERE'S MORE REASON TO PROTEST JROTC:

if this doesn't get you riled up, well...
-Marc Norton

S.F. school board makes shift in military strategy
San Francisco Business Times
Friday, December 7, 2007
http://washington.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2007/12/10/editorial1
.html

Old soldiers, as the saying goes, just fade away. The San Francisco schools'
90-year-old quasi-military program, the JROTC, isn't going to go so quietly.

That the fate of the JROTC is still kicking around as an issue is testament
that its abolition in November 2006 was an illegitimate sham. A new school
board had been elected, but not yet seated. In between, a lame-duck member
who'd been gunning for the JROTC for better than a decade persuaded his
colleagues to give him its scalp as a going-away present.

It was far from the first time the previous school board allowed adults'
political sensitivities to trump children's educational interests. This was
a board that was only too willing to get sidetracked on items outside its
remit: Whether illegal immigrants should get the vote. Whether school time
should be used for anti-war activities. Whether the board should take a
position on state ballot issues. And whether its members' personal opinions
about world affairs and the U.S. military should influence the manner in
which they carried out their strictly local duties.

The new board, three of its seven members elected in 2006, is a bit better.
To its credit, it seems less enthusiastic about carrying out the scheduled
execution of a program for which 1,500 students continue to sign up each
year.

There are other signs of dissension in the board ranks. Last month, a
proposal to give JROTC a reprieve until June 2009 made it onto the agenda,
co-sponsored by board President Mark Sanchez, before being pulled for
consideration at a later date.

Sanchez was one of four votes on the previous board for killing JROTC.
Admittedly, any epiphany on the part of one the board's progressive
stalwarts likely owes more to the aforementioned adult politics than
anything else. See, Sanchez and fellow longtimer Eric Mar have decided to
climb out of the progressive playpen that is the school board and onto the
playground of the Board of Supervisors. They may need to try to convince
voters they are not so far left as to be off the map.

In any case, the issue isn't going away. It remains a microcosm of much of
the dysfunction that afflicts the stewardship of the city's public school
system. It's another instance in which the kids are bottom last in line for
having their interests protected. We raise it again because it's a business
issue: Nothing is more potent in recruiting or retaining companies,
employees and investment than a sense of whether the city's schools are
getting better or worse.

We'll freely admit that JROTC -- with its military-style drilling, uniforms
and organization -- isn't for everyone. That's fine; it's voluntary. But, as
many of the students themselves eloquently put it, the structure of the
program can give kids from challenging backgrounds the chance to develop
confidence, leadership and self-discipline -- skills that they aren't
necessarily going to get in the classroom.

As for claims that it's just a recruiting front for the military, this
weapon of mass induction is non-existent: Fewer than 5 percent of JROTC
members enlist (meanwhile, 80 percent go to college). [Actually, Department
of Defense statistics show that about 45% of JROTC cadets nationwide end up
in the military. -MN] On whether it "endorses" the military's homophobic
"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, that's a flashpoint only for opponents:
Openly gay cadets were among those pleading to save the program. And get
real: JROTC is no more part of the U.S. invasion of Iraq than are the
schools' soccer teams or science clubs.

Still, there is one piece of military logic that the board should consider
in deciding whether it has the courage to fully break with a discredited
past: Sometimes, you have to retreat to advance. That's what backing away
from its predecessor's bad decision would be: regrouping to win a bigger
battle.


PLEASE CIRCULATE THIS LETTER AND WRITE LETTERS TO THE BOARD!

The U.S. military has been busy organizing to overturn the Boards decision
to phase out JROTC. It is imperative that we show that the people of San
Francisco support the Board's decision to phase out JROTC by 2008. That is
why we are asking that as many letters as possible be sent to all the Board
members ASAP.

For regular mail send letters to:

555 Franklin Street, Room 106
San Francisco, CA 94102

For email, addresses are listed below.

SAMPLE LETTERS (IN SPANISH BELOW):

Dear San Francisco School Board Member,

I strongly support the San Francisco School Board¹s resolution to phase out
JROTC in SF high schools.  San Francisco schools can and must do better for
young people than a program designed and directed by the Pentagon, which
does not meet many important city and state standards.

I am outraged at the aims and conduct of those working against the school
board, students, and community activists to reverse that decision.  It is my
understanding that JROTC instructors (all paid, retired military officers)
and participants have engaged in a campaign that has involved actively
undermining a school board established committee, and directing slander,
intimidation and death threats against board members, students and
activists.  This behavior is unacceptable and some of it is illegal.

I strongly support those standing up against demonization and threats by the
Pentagon-run JROTC and who are, instead, truly working in the interest of
youth in San Francisco, across the country, in Iraq and around the world who
deserve better than what the Pentagon has to offer.  I plan to attend future
school board meetings to stand up for the Board¹s decision to phase out
JROTC in San Francisco.

Sincerely,
[NAME--if student or parent please indicate school name]

*************************************************************

>From Cristina in English and Spanish:

Dear Members of the School Board of Directors,

I am a parent that believes that our children should not receive classes
geared toward war and the military. The JROTC class is clearly orientated to
offer our children a career in the military as an option. This is a form of
indoctrination. We minorities are more susceptible to such offers since we
do not have many alternatives for our youth.

That is why we ask you to not reinstate JROTC classes and to give our youth
the opportunity to have careers with out converting them into canon fodder.

Do Not Reinstate JROTC!

Sincerely,

*************************************************************

Queridos Miembros de la Mesa Directiva Escolar,

Yo soy un padre de familia que creo que nuestros hijos no deben recibir
ninguna clase de educación sobre Guerra o militares. La clase de JROTC es
claramente una clase orientada a ofrecer a nuestros hijos la carrera militar
como una opción. Esto es una forma de indoctrinacion. Las minorías somos más
susceptibles a esos ofrecimientos pues no tenemos mucha alternativa para
nuestras jóvenes.

Por eso les pido a ustedes que no reinstituyan la clase de JROTC y que le
den la oportunidad a nuestros hijos de tener carrera son necesidad de
convertirse en carne de canon.

No A La Reinstitución de JROTC.
 
Sinceramente,

*************************************************************

Send letters to:
BOARD OF EDUCATION:

Mr. Carlos Garcia, Superintendent of Schools
CarlosGarcia@xxxxxxxxx

Mr. Mark Sanchez, President
SanchezM5@xxxxxxxxx <mailto:yeen@xxxxxxxxx>

Mr. Norman Yee, Vice President
YeeN1@xxxxxxxxx

Ms. Jane Kim 
KimJ7@xxxxxxxxx

Mr. Eric Mar, Esq. 
mare@xxxxxxxxx

Ms. Kim-Shree Maufas
MaufasKS@xxxxxxxxx

Ms. Hydra Mendoza
MendozaH@xxxxxxxxx

Ms. Jill Wynns
Wynnsj@xxxxxxxxx 

Also See: 

JROTC Campaign: Fight to Win?
by Marc Norton, 2007-12-04
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=5163

JROTC-Perpetrator of Jane Kim Death Threat Identified
November 29, 2007
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/
The original version of this article
was published in Beyond Chron
on November 29, 2006.
Copyright © 2006 Marc Norton
http://www.marcnorton.us/98827/99108.html

JROTC Supporters Threaten JROTC Opponents
by Marc Norton? Nov. 22? 2006
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3940

Here's what Wikipedia says about JROTC:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JROTC

THE NEXT MEETING OF THE STOP JROTC COMMITTEE IS:

MONDAY,JANUARY 7, 7:00 P.M.
474 VALENCIA STREET, FIRST FLOOR, Room 145 (To the left as you come in, and
all the way to the back of the long hallway, then, to the right.)


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