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California Study Says Military Kids More Likely to Bring Guns to School

I remember after just a few years of repeated deployments to the Mideast, military folks, civilians and government officials all began to wonder aloud what long-term effect the exhaustion of war would have on military families.

Now, more than a decade later, studies have been conducted and the results are rolling in, most with not so good results. As I read most of them, I find that I agree with the results and have even experienced some of the lingering hardships that come with having a spouse who is repeatedly exposed to combat.

However, a study released by the California Department of Education in January made my blood boil.

Researchers say they found that military-connected students were more likely than nonmilitary students to be "physically victimized, which included being pushed or shoved, being in a fight, and having property stolen." It adds, "These students were also more likely to have rumors spread about them and to be the subject of sexual jokes and gestures."

This, I can believe.

When you are consistently the new kid in school, you are the easiest target. Military kids live a life of constant transition that few adults could handle. The findings agree. The leader author, Tamika D. Gilreath, assistant professor of social work at the University of Southern California, said in a release, "Such relocations cause youth to lose important social supports and networks."

Um, duh.

Thousands of military spouses could have saved them the work and told them that. But I digress. The study's next finding is what upset me. 

The study reports that the number of military children who reported bringing a gun to school was double that of nonmilitary students - 8.3 percent compared to 3.6 percent. The study also found that students who had endured a deployment carried a gun more frequently than those who had never been through a combat deployment - 5.6 percent compared to 2.8 percent.

The study compared 14,512 students in grades 7, 9 and 11 who attend schools in six, military-connected districts in southern California.

There. With one single study of a miniscule, fraction of military kids, they all have been labeled as the dangerous kids who brandish weapons in the school hallway.

The California Department of Education should be embarrassed to have even released this study.

Let's put this out there now, military kids are not dangerous.

The fact that they are familiar with weapons and talk of war and battle means they have endured a very heavy burden. They have done more to serve their country than the average American.

It does not mean they are going to shoot up their school.

In 2012 the DOD estimated that there were approximately 1.9 million military children in the U.S., ranging in age from newborn to 18-years-old. Of those, 1.3 million were of school age. The Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors estimates that currently 4,897 children have lost a parent on the battlefield since the war began.

In my view, 14,512 students, only a portion of which are military, does not speak for 1.9 million.

Yes, military families are struggling. War is hell - on the battlefield and off. Military children see it every day. Being a soldier is not a 9 to 5 job that can be left at the office. Talk of combat, injuries and weapons, unfortunately, are part of the everyday discussion in military households.

And yes, there are many, many military families, including children, who are struggling with the aftermath of deployments. Mental health issues are rampant. Abuse is happening in military households. Suicide rates are skyrocketing. There are many needs to be met.

I cannot explain why children in these California school districts feel the need to bring a gun to school. Obviously, that is an issue that needs to be addressed and handled. No student should carry a weapon onto campus.

But what I do know is that this report will only help to isolate and ostracize military children, nationwide. Now will non-military families who meet a military child try to keep their distance because they are afraid? Will they suspect that every military child they meet is carrying a weapon? Will this report create a cloud of fear around military kids who attend schools with low military populations? My fear is yes, it will.  

How about, instead of labeling military kids as the potential bad guys, we help make sure that never happens. How about, as a nation, we reach out and give military families the help they need. 

Military kids are among the strongest in the nation. They have shouldered the weight of a decade of war while most of the country continues on as if it never happened. It is time to relieve them of their burden.

Help them, don't label them. 

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