Challenges Facing Veterans

In this undated photo provided by Maj. Gen. John Cantwell, left, the general talks with an unidentified injured man at an undisclosed location in Afghanistan. Maj. Gen. Cantwell, the former commander of Australia’s troops in Afghanistan, spent 20 years secretly suffering from PTSD, which began after he served in the Gulf War and grew worse as he rose through the military’s ranks. (Sgt. Neil Ruskin/AP)

Unemployment, homelessness and suicide are just some of the issues facing the 2.5 million veterans of our two most recent wars.

We learned this week that military suicides reached a record number in 2012, with 349 active duty members taking their own lives. That number does not include veterans who have committed suicide.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has programs to deal with these issues, but there are also a number of other organizations that have sprung up since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began more than a decade ago.

“It’s really an important historic moment, because now we’ve got guys who understand what war’s like. Chuck Hagel will be the first enlisted man to ever run the Department of Defense. That’s huge.”

One of them is Iraq And Afghanistan Veterans Of America. With 200,000 members, IAVA is the first and largest organization of vets of those wars.

Time magazine recently called it “the most important organization representing the new generation of veterans.”

The group’s founder and CEO, Paul Rieckhoff, served as an infantry platoon leader in the Iraq war from 2003 to 2004. He calls the increase in suicides troubling, and says everyone – not just the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - should be involved.

“Every community based non profit, local veterans group, the faith-based community – everybody’s got to wrap their arms around these folks and get them the support they need,” Rieckhoff said.

In response to a question from a Here & Now listener about the G.I. Bill, Rieckhoff recommended that veterans go to newgibill.org to calculate their benefits.

“If you’re not in school and you haven’t looked at the G.I. Bill and you’ve served overseas, check it out,” he said. “It’s a great benefit. Schools are really stepping up and it’s going to position you for success. It’s still bumpy. The V.A. is getting out too many late checks. The administration of the benefits has been tough. But it’s a really, really tremendous opportunity.”

Rieckhoff said it means a lot to troops on the ground that President Obama nominated veterans to his second term cabinet: Sen. John Kerry as Secretary of State and former Sen. Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense.

“You’ve also got Eric Shinseki, a wounded Vietnam vet at V.A., so you’re going to have – it looks like – three cabinet secretaries who are Vietnam vets,” Rieckhoff said. “It’s really an important historic moment, because now we’ve got guys who understand what war’s like. Chuck Hagel will be the first enlisted man to ever run the Department of Defense. That’s huge.”

Related: Navy SEAL Loses Battle With PTSD
For New England veterans who need support: Home Base Program

Guest:

Paul Rieckhoff, Iraq war veteran and founder and CEO of Iraq And Afghanistan Veterans Of America. He tweets @PaulRieckhoff.

We welcome comments from all of our listeners. Post below. Please stay on topic and be civil. Comments may be moderated by us, but you are solely responsible for the content of your comments.

TriSec

Mr. Rieckhoff….what can we do to re-connect ordinary citizens to our military? Over the past decade of war, it became very easy to be disconnected from the realities faced by active-duty personnel and their families. It seems to me that such a small percentage of the population has any direct connection, that it’s very easy to “overlook” what is happening out there. Getting the general population more involved would be extremely helpful as a support network, job-finding network, and a whole host of other things that tend to be done badly by government or the VA.

David Matayabas
Waltham, MA
(TriSec over at http://www.fourfreedomsblog.com)
Jbesignano

Ask him why he believes having a former enlisted infantryman like chuck Hagel as secretary of defense would be important? What qualities does he think that gives Hagel that makes him more qualified.
NPRJunkie

Walmart Jobs-Will they be full-time with benefits, including health? I doubt it. Doesn’t help if the soldiers can’t support themselves. And if they are full-time with benefits, why can’t they do that for regular employees who will no doubt be resentful of the soldiers. More stress and problems
David

I am an excellent individual and group psychotherapist but my master’s degree came from Loyola Chicago, which is not certified by CACREP (Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs). (This serious university, however, is accredited by a wide variety of other organizations.) As a full-grown, highly intelligent and empathetic therapist, I am forbidden from providing my skills to Veterans Administration participants. This reality seems unfair to both counselor and client.