The below op-ed appeared on 11/11/2010
 on 
The 
Hill
 congressional
 blog.



By Sarah Edkins

Honor
 the
 warrior,
 not 
the
 war.

That’s
 Iraq
 Veterans
 Against
 the
 War’s
 message
 this
 Veterans
 Day,
 as
 thousands
 of
 our
 country’s
 service
 men
 and
 women 
suffer in 
silence 
in 
hospital 
beds,
 homeless
 shelters, 
and
 even 
combat
 zones 
from 
the
 debilitating
 effects
 of
 Post‐Traumatic
 Stress
 Disorder
 (PTSD),
 Traumatic
 Brain
 Injury
 (TBI),
 and
 Military
 Sexual
 Trauma
 (MST).
 Today,
 as
 many
 as 
fifty 
percent
 of 
our 
nation’s
service 
members 
who 
have 
served
 deployments 
to 
Iraq
 or
 Afghanistan
 experience
 PTSD,
 and
 twelve‐to‐seventeen
 percent
 are
 using
 some
 kind
 of
 psychiatric
 drug
 in
 combat
 zones.
 Despite
 repeated
 statements
 by
 government
 officials
 regarding
 their
 concern
 for
 these
 silent
 illnesses,
hoards 
of 
traumatized
 troops
 are
 deployed
 or
 denied
 appropriate
 medical
 care 
every 
day.

U.S.
 Army
 Specialist
 Jeff
 Hanks
 is
 a
 perfect
 example.
 After
 serving
 two
 tours
 of
 duty—one
 in
 Iraq
 and
 one
 in
 Afghanistan—Hanks
 returned 
home
 to 
Kentucky 
on
 leave
 in 
September 
and 
found
 his
 life 
turned
 upside
 down.
 He 
experienced
 extreme
 discomfort
 in 
large
 crowds,
 panic 
attacks,
detachment
 from 
his 
family,
 and
 difficulty
 controlling 
his
anger.
 Hanks 
sought
 medical
 help 
on 
two
military
 bases
 and
 was 
scheduled
 for
 a 
TBI
 screening
 when
 his
 commanding
 officers
 sent
 down
 the
 order
 for
 deployment;
 they
 had
 called
 the
 Fort
 Campbell
 medical
 center 
and
 requested 
immediate
clearance for Jeff.
 He 
had
 no
 other 
choice 
but 
to 
leave
 the 
base
 and
 has 
been AWOL 
since
 October
 7.

Today,
 with
 the
 help
 of
 IVAW,
 GI
 rights
 counselors,
 civilian
 doctors,
 and
 a
 cohort
 of
 civilian
 supporters,
 Jeff
 Hanks
 will
 turn
 himself
 in
 to
 the
 authorities
 at
 Fort
 Campbell,
 where
 he
 faces
 potential
 legal
 repercussions.
 Before
 his
 official
 return
 to
 the
 base,
 Hanks
 will
 give
 a
 press
 conference
 outside
 Fort
 Campbell
 as
 part
 of
 IVAW’s 
Operation 
Recovery
 campaign
 to
 speak 
out
about 
the
 U.S. 
Military’s
 abuses 
of
 the
 right
 to 
heal.
 “Now
 they
 just
 want
 to
 get
 rid
 of
 me,”
 Hanks
 told
 IVAW
 in
 a
 phone
 call
 this
 week.
 “But
 I’m
 not
 going
 anywhere.
 I
 may 
not 
be 
in
 uniform,
 but
 I’m
not
 going 
to 
shut 
up. 
At 
this 
point, 
I
 want 
to 
help 
other 
soldiers 
like 
me.”

So 
this 
Veterans 
Day, 
while 
you
 watch 
city‐wide
 parades
 of 
soldiers, 
marines, 
sailors, 
airmen,
 and
nurses, 
think
 of
 those 
like 
Jeff 
Hanks 
who
 have 
served
 our
 country
 faithfully 
and
 now
 need
 the 
help
and 
supports
 they
 were
 promised.
 I,
 for
 one,
 cannot
 think
 of
 any
 better
 way
 to
 honor
 our
 nation’s
 service
 men
 and
 women
 than
 returning 
their 
right 
to 
heal.