Respecting diversity in the military

It is out of the great respect I have for those in the Hopkins ROTC program and all who have or are currently serving in the armed forces that I write this opinion. Those associated with this program have all decided that their love for their country is so strong that they will give four years of military service to the United States, regardless of any personal feelings they might have as to the wisdom of their orders. I only wish I was of such strong character.

I realize that Jewish-Americans are generally not associated with the armed forces; today many stereotype the Jewish community as being comprised of wealthy, liberal individuals opposed to the Bush administration and its policies, and therefore certainly not a segment of the American population that is joining the armed forces in record numbers. Yet lost in such a stereotype are facts that point to a proud and long-standing tradition of military service within the Jewish-American community.

During the American Revolution Lt. Col. Solomon Bush was the highest ranking Jewish officer in the Continental Army; he was badly wounded at the battle of Brandywine, the same battle where his brother, Capt. Lewis Bush, was killed. During the Civil War 8,500 Jews served for both Union and Confederacy forces.

During World War II, 550,000 Jewish men and women served in the U.S. armed forces. The proud military legacy began by Lt. Col Bush and Capt. Bush has carried on through every American war, including today's, with 5,000 to 8,000 Jews currently serving in the U.S. armed forces.

However, here at Hopkins, this nearly 233-year military tradition of Jewish service in the American military seems not only forgotten, but worse, continually trampled on.

This year, on April 19, the Blue Jay Battalion, the Battalion representing those Hopkins students in the U.S. Army's ROTC program, will have their annual year-end military banquet and award ceremony. Such a joyous event is being held on the first night of the Jewish holiday of Passover, the holiday which celebrates God's bringing the Jewish people out of Egypt and the beginning of their journey to the Holy Land.

One could label such an occurrence a bad coincidence. Except, as anyone who has ever requested rooms at Hopkins knows, rooms such as the Glass Pavilion, where the banquet has been and will be held, have to be scheduled months in advance.

Therefore, when Lt. Col. Ken Romaine, the commander of the Blue Battalion, scheduled this year's banquet, he either did not check a calendar to see if it conflicted with a major event or religious holiday or, worse, months ago, he checked a calendar, saw April 19 was the first night of Passover, and still decided to schedule the banquet on the same night.

What's worse is that this is the second time Romaine seems to have committed such a grievous mistake; the Hopkins Blue Jay Battalion's 2005 banquet was also held on the first night of Passover.

Lt. Col. Ken Romaine, the commander of the Blue Jay Battalion and the man who approved the banquet dates in 2005 and 2008, is by all accounts an intelligent man, as well as a hero; he is a West Point graduate, a man who has served in the Army on active duty for nearly 20 years and has served and been wounded in the current war in Iraq. Yet by repeatedly scheduling a formal banquet on the first night of Passover he also seems to be a man whose actions trample on the memory of Jewish-American veterans, as well as dishonor those Jews currently serving in the armed forces.

Further, Romaine has Jewish cadets under his command within the Blue Jay Battalion. Therefore, in 2005 and in 2008, he forced persons under his command to choose between attending the banquet and continuing their religious tradition; to, in effect, choose between their allegiance to their country and their allegiance to their God.

The actions of Romaine have demonstrated, in effect, if not in intent, a blatant disregard for the military service rendered by Jewish-Americans in the past and in the present-day.

I know Romaine has forced persons under his command to choose between upholding their obligations to their country or their beliefs in God. And I know that by continually demonstrating such disrespect and forcing cadets to make such a horrible choice, Romaine shows, by example, to all the cadets under his command that it is okay to trample on the military legacy of Jewish-American veterans, and that it is acceptable to schedule events on Jewish Holy Days.

So I plead with Romaine to lead by example and to honor the hundreds of thousands of Jewish veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces, as well as veterans of other faiths, by moving the date of the banquet so it does not conflict with Passover or any other religious holiday.