'Jarhead' author speaks out for disabled veterans

DAV Magazine, May-June, 2006 by Clare D.

Anthony Swofford's book Jarhead did not receive an endorsement by the Marine Corps. The book, a memoir of Swofford's experiences as a scout sniper in the Persian Gulf War, doesn't look at life in the Corps with rose-colored glasses. As its title suggests, Swofford's goal in the book is to provide an honest, insider's look at his military experience.

Many former Marines and veterans may be offended by Swofford's portrayal of his time in service, and the political opinions he's offered as a columnist for Details magazine. One famous former Marine went so far as to call the film based on Swofford's book "Rotten to the Corps." But Swofford is unrepentant.

"For every Oliver North, I hear from numerous other veterans--especially Marines--who recognize themselves in the story I told, and recognize the same Marine Corps that they served in. They also recognize that I'm not denigrating the Marine Corps," Swofford told DAV.

"It's not my job to glorify the Marine Corps. That's the job of the recruiters and that's Oliver North's job. My job is to be honest. And I opened up a really privatized and specialized world to people who otherwise wouldn't know it. As far as I'm concerned that's an act of respect for the Marine Corps and also for Marines," Swofford said.

Between political jabs and providing the public with an education about the military, Swofford has used his writing and newfound fame to reach out to veterans--especially the men and women who are returning from war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

In the book and in his columns, he's written extensively about the transition warriors face when they return from combat and readjust to civilian life. Swofford is so interested in helping returning veterans, that he co-produced the documentary "Semper Fi: Life After the Corps" with Jarhead director Sam Mendes.

The documentary, which is available on the Jarhead collector's edition DVD, chronicles the real life experiences of several Marine Corps Iraq War veterans and a Persian Gulf War veteran.

In the feature, the Marines speak honestly about their feelings and emotions as they cycle back to the world. They talk about their experiences with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the challenges they face as they move on with their lives.

"I got out of the Marine Corps in late 1992, and it took me quite a few years to normalize and adjust to civilian life. I'm more aware that entering the military is crossing one threshold as a young man or a woman, and then going to combat you're crossing another one that's even, I think, more difficult to ever return from," said Swofford.

The son of a Vietnam veteran, Swofford is open about his father's combat trauma. He said he believes that it's critical for the public to understand the physical and mental sacrifices that veterans face.

"I think that while the population at large learned a great lesson from Vietnam, and that was to separate the war from the warrior--the politics from the soldier--there's still a great good of distance between that and an actual understanding of the day-to-day difficulties that the returning combatant faces," Swofford noted. "As a writer with a voice that can be heard and can be recognized, I feel like I have a duty to write about veterans."

According to Swofford, one of the most poignant moments in his Marine Corps career occurred when he was returning from Kuwait. "There was a gathering of a few hundred people out waving flags, throwing beers in the bus and a Marine veteran got on the bus and thanked us and said that we'd shown them that we weren't animals--that it was okay to be a veteran and a combatant. For me, that really, throughout the years linked me with that generation of veterans," Swofford said.

To Swofford, it's important that the nation learns from its mistakes and evolves in the way it treats its veterans. Even after Vietnam, he points out in his book that his platoon was ordered to ingest q bromide pills without knowing about possible side-effects. He considers Gulf War Syndrome an issue that is still unresolved. He said it's critical that veterans get the information, care and benefits they've earned.

Having heard about homeless Iraq War veterans, the author said he fears veterans are being discharged before they are ready to face civilian life. "When nine months ago you were kicking doors down in Fallujah and putting bullets in people, you might not necessarily want to be sitting in some state university in Illinois taking English 101," he said.

At the same time, Swofford recognizes that the public is largely divorced from the real issues veterans and members of the all-volunteer armed forces face.

He praises the DAV for serving veterans and keeping their needs in the public spotlight.

"Most people don't realize that the majority of the people who serve in the military get out after four, six or eight years and they don't have a pension. They don't have a life of benefits. In fact the monetary value attached to a full disability is quite minor. It's really, I think, just enough to get a person by. When we have a new generation of young men and women serving at war, we need to make sure our lawmakers and communities pay attention to our veterans."