A Pacifist Goes to Boot Camp - Day 1

Marine Corps Educators Workshop

March 2 – 5, 2010

Parris Island, SC

I must preface everything I say about my experience with the Marine Corps Educators Workshop on Parris Island with the fact that I am a life long, unabashed, committed advocate for work in Peace and Justice issues. I am Anti-War. I believe that war is NOT the answer in any situation. Although most of you already know this about me, I need to say this!! That said, as a high school educator I am in daily contact with young men and women who make the choice to enlist in some branch of the military, and I also have regular contact with Staff Sergeant Rock, our local recruiter who comes to my school to work with our students and who also introduced me to the Educators Workshop. My anti-war position, and my ignorance of anything military, has put me at odds when working with these students and Staff Sergeant Rock. When the opportunity came in the Educators Workshop, I saw my chance to gain a little knowledge and hopefully begin to build a bridge – as it turns out I only need a bridge over the gap in my own understanding.



An over-arching positive aspect of this experience was that I was with a group of educators. We are a special bunch, in my opinion, we educators. During our week together we had wonderful conversations about how to do education, about problems and issues in our schools, curriculum, prospects for the 21st century, etc – all quite apart from our ‘training’ on Parris Island. I felt connected to a like-minded group, even without knowing where they stood individually on peace and war. Our large group numbered about 60, half in the ‘Louisville’ group from Kentucky, and half from the ‘Detroit’ group of SE Michigan and Western Ohio. We were also a mix of principals, guidance counselors and teachers.

Our first experience on the island, at 6 am, was to stand in the ‘yellow footprints’ that are painted on the road right outside the intake building. Recruits arrive at 2am and stand in these footprints and get their first speech from a Drill Instructor about how to stand, where to look, that they are going to become Marines. This is done in the shout-speak that you may be aware of from movies and TV. It is scary and disorienting at first, and they spoke to us educators that way! Some of the stuff they said I never understood, I think because of that shout-speak, but apparently the recruits figure it out! Recruits are then invited to enter the building through the silver doors with the Marine Corps emblem, but since we were not recruits, we had to enter through the side doors!! This all adds to the mystique and ‘pride’ of being a Marine, I think. Once inside we sat at desks and heard the initiation speech. The Marine Corps prides itself on being the Best and the Brightest, the Few and the Proud, and recruits are told that the training is not easy, but if they succeed they will be a part of a community that will never fail them. The Marine Corps core values are Honor, Commitment, and Courage, and these core values are imbued into every aspect of training the entire 70 days of boot camp. So while a recruit is being pounded with shout-speak, they are also hearing about respect and self control. Recruits are told that the Marine Corps expects their best efforts and will not settle for less, and they don’t! Recruits are pushed to the limit, beyond the limit, but they are also encouraged, buttressed, with the idea that success will bring them gold in the form of a solid, life-long community and superior training and education in any field they choose. More than once during my week I felt eternally grateful for the solid community of the Church of the Brethren that I was born into. I can only imagine being raised without that anchor, and can only wonder what it would be like to long for community. But, the Marine Corps supplies it in aces if that is what you are looking for.

Following this briefing each recruit loses their identity. Everything they brought with them to boot camp is surrendered for the next 70 days – watches, jewelry, clothing, cell phones, ipods, even contact lenses and eyeglasses. Everything, and I mean everything, a recruit might need is supplied by the Marine Corps. Feminine products, towels, soap, shampoo, Marine Corps issued eyewear if needed – everything. Boys get their hair shaved and girls are taught how to pull their hair back into a tight bun. Recruits will not see a clock or a calendar for the next 70 days. They are allowed one phone call home the day they arrive, but it is scripted – they can only say they have arrived safely and are on Parris Island. They cannot enter into conversation. Each recruit is measured for clothing and also fitted for shoes. Because they will be so physically active, special attention is catered to measuring feet so that proper footwear can be issued.

Recruits are given physical fitness tests to measure where they are on the Marine scale. No one is turned away because of lack of physical training, but it may mean a recruit starts basic training at a later date. They must be competent at a certain level before they can begin basic training. Care is given not to push a recruit too hard, because no one benefits from someone who can’t proceed due to over doing it, so everything is monitored. I’m sure most recruits experience a great deal of soreness – it is not a cushy program, just accommodating. The Marine Corps wants a recruit who can perform and function at top notch level, but will not leave any recruit behind.

Once all this is done, recruits are briefed on basic Marine Corps philosophy and expectations. The Marines believe they are the only military branch to imbue moral code values in their basic training. I am certainly not the one to verify this, so I’ll go along with the Marine Corps. Honor, Commitment and Courage are the three core values around which teaching is centered. While I might be inclined to slant my definitions for each value a little differently than the Marine Corps does, from my teaching experience I suspect that most recruits have not had much structured moral teaching/example at all, so at least it is being addressed. I do have to say that I felt there was a level of respect and concern for each individual recruit, even the ‘difficult’ ones.

This was our first morning, but because we started so early it was still only 9:00. Most of us were exhausted already, but the day was still young!! We were ushered off to briefings to introduce us to what the Marine Corps has to offer recruits in terms of benefits, training and lifestyle. Because we have an all-volunteer military, the Marine Corps wants to be selective (pun?) in who they bring on board. All recruits must have a high school diploma. A GED is no longer acceptable, so this means that the Recruiter bears a lot of responsibility in getting kids to graduate. SSgt Rock visits my school on a regular basis to make sure kids he is working with are completing their studies in a timely fashion. Also, the front office at my school confirms that transcripts must be in order before the Marine Corps will accept them. Recruits who sign on to a 4 year tour of duty will receive $80,000 towards a college education of their choice. Not a bad deal, and one of the reasons kids are so willing to sign on. The Marine Corps values higher education and encourage their recruits to begin college courses as soon as they are done with boot camp, even while they are beginning infantry training, which is the next step after boot camp. One thing I did come away with is that the Marine Corps does want to be the ‘intellectual’ branch of the military, if you will. At the end of the workshop the General told us that he wanted all Marines to be PhD’s! From a recruit’s perspective, if there has not been an avenue to college in the home, this is a very nice benefit!! Throughout these briefings we were reminded of the core values of Honor, Commitment and Courage that the Marine Corps imbues into every lesson. We held audience with a Corporal, a General, several Majors and Captains – I was impressed. Even I am aware that an intimate Q&A with a General is a bigger deal that most.

After the briefings we went to the rifle simulation training. Every Marine is an expert marksman with the M16 rifle. This was my first real moral obstacle. A line I couldn’t cross. The simulation training takes place in a black room with a life-size video screen at one end. The M16s are hooked up to a computer, so when the target appears on the video screen one can aim and fire, and the computer will record your score. Recruits train in this method. I did choose to opt-out of this training. I was one of three out of sixty, so clearly, most wanted this opportunity. While I was groping deep inside for understanding about my reaction and why others were not more resistant I began to realize for the first time in my 56 years that my resistance to war is not the norm. Now, I’m not really that naive. I know war resistance is not the norm. But I don’t think I’ve ever been in a roomful of people firing M16 rifles, either. Another part of this time was a briefing on a range of guns of weapons that Marines use presented by a Marine who was clearly an expert, and had used all of these weapons while deployed on two occasions in Iraq. This presentation was more disturbing to me than firing of the M16s, and I think that comes from the discussion about the weapons. While firing the rifles everyone was occupied and there wasn’t too much talking. But with the weapons presentation there were many questions and a few members of the group had used these weapons or similar while they had been in Desert Storm or even Viet Nam. Weaponry just doesn’t hold the mystique for me. Nor do I feel ‘safer’ knowing that these weapons are being used on my behalf, in my defense. Which, by the way, is a concept that I don’t necessarily buy into, but has a nearly untouchable reverence for most Americans, including the group I was with.

After this rifle training we got to eat a box lunch with selected recruits in the mess. The recruits were spaced out, and introduced themselves in the shout-speak. We could then sit next to whoever we wanted based on where they were from or their area of training. There was a young woman from Chelsea, MI which is just the next town over from where I live, basically, so I sat with her. I don’t know if the recruits were coached in what they could say or not, but I found this to be a rather candid discussion. We talked about why she chose to enlist in the Marines, what she left behind, and how she was liking boot camp. This young woman was a few years older than the other recruits at 22 yrs, and she has a couple of years of community college, too, which I think impacts her experience. She told me it is basically a mind game, that she had figured out by the third week of training that the Drill Instructors were going to scream and shout, and that she would just comply and get through. The physical stuff wasn’t as hard as she expected, either. On why she chose to enlist, she said she recognized that the economy was not good, and that she wanted to make a good career choice. She felt joining the Marines would present a challenge for her, as well as a good career choice. She plans to enter Military Police school when she is done with boot camp, and train with a canine. I wish her well!

While we ate I found it interesting that women’s diets are controlled in that they get no cookies or sweets in their box lunches!! I guess the Marine Corps has found that women are prone to gaining weight, and so they limit the fatty stuff. There is plenty to eat in that box lunch, more than I could eat at once, but I would have missed the cookies (as a guest I got the cookies, even though I am a woman.)

After lunch we went to the rifle range. The range was set up to simulate a challenging battle of the Viet Nam war where Viet Cong materialized out of the jungle and were doing a good job of picking the other side off (that would be the Americans). Everyone who had practiced before was allowed to shoot at the targets (Viet Cong). I stood back quite a bit with the same two men who had opted out before, and another woman who decided not to fire at the range. It was pretty noisy out there, and there wasn’t much discussion, except to note with the other woman that we could have stayed on the bus and kept warm.

After the rifle range we were allowed to clean up in our rooms for about half an hour – they really kept us on a tight schedule. I think most of us would have napped at that point if there had been a little more time. Then it was off to the Officer’s Club for dinner. It was nice there, good food. What intrigued me, though, was the concrete block room at the back where the hard core drinking was going on. One wall in there had a huge painting of Saddam Hussein and (I think) Fidel Castro. Everyone was throwing their empty beer bottles against that wall. Of course, the point is to relieve any aggression you might be harboring – not quite the way I’m accustomed to handling stress!! It was all good fun, though, with everyone cheering the others on. I threw a bottle, which impressed Major Cleaver and SSgt. McAdams, who knew I had not fired the M16. One thing I liked in this room were the huge wooden plaques commemorating each company – some of the plaques were quite old. I will reveal my ignorance here, but I think each company makes their own plaque and include on it everyone’s name, but also any other information that marked their time together – a favorite officer or experience, for example. The plaques were colorful and creative and showed a lot of spirit, and also showed the tremendous camaraderie within each company.

Then we all went back to the hotel. Amazingly some of us went down to the hotel bar, even though we were exhausted and had to be out the door at 6AM, but it was a good time to debrief a little and get to know one another. By some fluke I had my own room. On one hand nice, but I think I would have like to have had some company – there were a lot of things on my mind. I didn’t feel yet like I was getting deep enough information; I still had some questions to ask.

Sleep – end of Day 1.