JROTC’s values

This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.

To the editors:

I am writing in regards to the political cartoon criticizing Junior ROTC in your newspaper’s winter edition.

Where did the artist get his inspiration? Have any of you visited a high school Junior ROTC program? I am asking this because of the artist’s symbolism. He seems a little bit confused and dazed about the realities of education.

But as usual it is the portrayal of violence that will sell and hence be published even in papers such as your own.

If you would indeed like to set the record straight, why don’t you visit any of the high schools that have a JROTC program and check out what is being taught. They are taught the eight traditional values as well as leadership and citizenship. We would be happy to set up a visit and show you.

More than likely, you would say you are just expressing all opinions and sides of the argument.

From my point of view, this is exactly why I spent 28 years of active service through a couple of wars so that all Americans can say and do what they want to. And as usual, they seem to go to one extreme.

Joe Fraioli, JROTC Instructor

Frankford High School