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Homefront 911

How Families of Veterans Are Wounded by Our Wars

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

The hallmarks of America's War on Terror have been repeated long deployments and a high percentage of troops returning with psychological problems. Family members of combat veterans are at a higher risk of potentially lethal domestic violence than almost any other demographic; it's estimated that one in four children of active-duty service members have symptoms of depression; and nearly one million veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan require increased care due to physical or psychological trauma. But, despite these staggering trends, civilian America has not been mobilized to take care of the families left behind; the American Homefront, which traditionally has been rallied to support the nation's war efforts, has disappeared.
In Homefront 911 Stacy Bannerman, a nationally-recognized advocate for military families, provides an insider's view of how more than a decade of war has contributed to the emerging crisis we are experiencing in today's military and veteran families as they battle with overwhelmed VA offices, a public they feel doesn't understand their sacrifices, and a nation that still isn't fully prepared to help those who have given so much.
Bannerman, whose husband served in Iraq, describes how extended deployments cause cumulative, long-lasting strain on families who may not see their parent, child, or spouse for months on end. She goes on to share the tools she and others have found to begin to heal their families, and advocates policies for advancing programs, services, and civilian support, all to help repair the broken agreement that the nation will care for its returning soldiers and their families.

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    • Kirkus

      August 1, 2015
      "Attention must be paid" is the demand being made by a woman who knows from hard experience what it is like to be married to a combat veteran with PTSD. Bannerman (When the War Came Home: The Inside Story of Reservists and the Families They Leave Behind, 2006) tells it like it is: she survived her husband's attempt to strangle her, but many other service wives have not. Citing statistics, she points out that the rates of domestic abuse, murder, and suicide in veterans' families-and those include children as well as spouses-are far higher than among the general public. While her personal plight is central to the story, she also includes the stories of many other spouses of combat veterans with serious mental health problems, often from PTSD or from traumatic brain injuries. She backs up these sometimes rather long and repetitive narratives with hard studies and shocking statistics that reveal the extent of the problem. In one study, officials at the Pentagon found that cases of child neglect, abuse, sexual assault, and murder in service families increased by 40 percent from 2009 to 2012. Bannerman's own story, which includes drinking and drug abuse, reveals how unprepared and ill-equipped the Veterans Administration is to help PTSD veterans and their families, how slow governments have been to allocate resources to their care, and how unaware the public is of the magnitude of the problem. A "wish list" at the end of the book spells out measures that the author would like to see taken to ease the burdens of the families of returning combat veterans, whose wounds may or may not be visible. An activist, Bannerman has set up programs for women, drafted legislation, and testified before congressional committees. Here, she takes her message to a broader public in a disturbing cry for help.

      COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Library Journal

      Starred review from September 15, 2015

      "Military families have always borne the burden of the war at home, but never before have we been quite so alone for so long," writes Bannerman, an Oregon-based, nationally recognized advocate for military families. This is not an easy book to read, nor should it be. It is a well-documented, well-written cri de coeur about the consequences of military deployment on soldiers and their families. The list of statistically significant instances of spousal and child abuse; rise in suicide rates (among wives and children as well as veterans); increased alcoholism; and proliferation of cases of post-traumatic stress disorder speak to the agonies that war visits upon soldiers and their families. Bannerman goes a step further by describing, in harrowing detail, the horrors that ensue when a country fails to address these all-too real trends. Building on Bannerman's Homefront 911, a performance piece that was presented at the U.S. Capitol, this account courageously discusses "what was really going on behind closed doors, when the Welcome Home ceremony was over, and the Yellow Ribbons were back in the box." VERDICT Highly recommended for readers of all types.--Ellen Gilbert, Princeton, NJ

      Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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