Veterans Against Bigotry, By Jason Criss Howk

The lesson most modern warriors take away from their military service is that race, ethnicity, and religion are not important traits when you need help in a fight. They are not useful indicators of leadership or tactical skills. They don’t influence marksmanship or strategic thinking.  No matter where you were raised, in the military you learn how to be color-blind and to respect ability not pedigree or beliefs. 

As we have started to see a rise in bigoted and hateful graffiti, speech, and other hateful activities like calling for the deaths of police officers , I offer a possible plan of action for our veterans.

If you see a supremacist or hate group planning a march or protest in your region then grab a buddy or two to make the bigots look foolish. Find your medals and badges and pin them on your chest. Put on an old uniform if it fits. Call the press and tell them what your doing and where to meet you. Then stand in the path of the morons and force them to have to march around you.

Those cowards won’t likely touch you but if they do, you know you have handled worse than these jokers can dish out. Just stand shoulder to shoulder again with your brothers and sisters of every ethnicity and background and tell these clowns to crawl back under their rock where they belong.

I believe firmly in free speech and all the other liberties guaranteed to us as Americans. I also know when it’s time to use my free speech to point out the idiotic and dangerous behavior of citizens that don’t know how stupid they are.

America is the envy of the world, still, because we somehow get a very diverse group of people to live together, grow together, and even go abroad to secure other people’s freedom together.

We are an amazing country and will continue to be one as long as we work together and keep Reverend King’s hope alive, that people be judged by their character not their appearance, (or their profession and beliefs).