How to leave the military if you’re already in or on the way
You’re serving in the military now and you want to leave, or you’re enlisted and you’ve decided you no longer want to pursue the military. Maybe you feel alone with your decision. Maybe you’re scared because you think you have no other choice but to continue to serve. Maybe you feel guilty because you’ve been trained to believe that the military is an honorable way to serve your country, but you no longer believe that to be true. What can you do now?
You’re dealing with some very difficult emotions. Relax and take a deep breath. The most important thing to know is that you are not alone! Thousands of military servicemembers have problems similar to yours, and most find a way to resolve them. You will, too.
The best place to start is with the GI Rights Hotline* at 800-394-9544, or 215-563-4620 if you’re overseas. You can call for information from a network of nonprofit, non-governmental agencies who can provide you information about military discharges, grievance and complaint procedures, and other civil rights. The service is free, and the call is confidential. You can obtain more information at www.girights.org, or you can e-mail them at girights@objector.org.
While GI Rights is one of the most comprehensive resources on the web, below are links to a variety of other organizations (many of them are GI Rights sponsors) that can also provide you with assistance or additional information.
Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors [Justin can make the bold text here a link to www.objector.org] (CCCO) supports conscientious objectors and promotes individual and collective resistance to war and preparations for war. CCCO has a wealth of information about conscientious objectors, including Advice for Conscientious Objectors in the Armed Forces, which includes a step-by-step guide to applying for conscientious objector status, and Helping Out: A Guide to Military Discharges and GI Rights, which provides clear instruction on how to advocate for clients in the military and to become a GI Advocate.
War Resisters Support Campaign [a link to http://www.resisters.ca] is a broad-based coalition of community, faith, labor and other organizations and individuals that have come together to support U.S. soldiers seeking asylum in Canada because they refuse to fight in the illegal war in Iraq.
Iraq Veterans Against War [a link to http://www.ivaw.org/activedutyresources] was founded to give a voice to the large number of active duty service people and veterans who are against the war in Iraq, but are under various pressures to remain silent. This link includes a variety of resources for active duty Soldiers, National Guard, and Reserve troops.
Catholic Peace Fellowship
[a link to http://www.catholicpeacefellowship.org/nextpage.asp?m=2013]supports Catholic conscientious objectors through education, counseling, and advocacy by helping those who choose not to participate in it, one person at a time.
Citizen Soldier [a link to http://www.citizen-soldier.org/index.htm ] provides assistance in defending GIs who stand against illegal policies. The site includes a variety of recent news articles and editorials covering a wide range of issues relating to servicemembers.
Seattle Draft and Military Counseling Center [a link to http://www.sdmcc.org/] provides accurate, comprehensive, and objective information about Selective Service, military law, military regulations, and administrative procedures to anyone in need of this service, and assists them in applying this information to their own situation and goals.
National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force [a link to http://www.nlgmltf.org/] assists those working on military law issues as well as military law counselors working directly with GIs. It trains and mentors counselors and beginning military law attorneys in all aspects of military law through training materials and direct communication. It updates changes in military law and policy.
*This is confusing, but there is another GI Rights Hotline at 877-447-4487. Their website is http://www.girightshotline.org/index.html . Does anyone know the difference between the two? This one does have a very good directory of discharge information at http://www.girightshotline.org/discharges/index.shtml, but many of the other pages are under construction. I tried calling and got a recorder. I’m inclined not to include it, unless anyone knows some reason to add it.
For a complete listing of the organizations sponsoring the GI Rights Hotline, see Sponsors [a link to http://www.objector.org/girights/whoweare.html].
I’d also like to have two boxes on the page, set off so they are viewable when someone first opens the page, but not necessarily at the top. I can work with Justin for the layout:
A Brief History of Military Resistance [make this a link to http://www.counterpunch.org/grossman06282006.html] provides a good article discussing dissent from soldiers reported throughout U.S. history since the 1840s.
You Are Not Alone! Read Courage to Resist’s Profiles in Resistance, [a link to http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/blogcategory/39/86/] profiles of U.S. military servicepersons who found the courage to resist the unjust wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Or hear their own words Courage to Resist’s Audio Project [a link to http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/blogcategory/49/95/] the words of real war resisters discussing their experiences in the military and getting out of it.