Female Cultural Support Team (CST) members in Afghanistan played a crucial role in building trust and bridging communication between local communities and military forces. Their unique access to women and families—groups often unreachable by male counterparts—enabled them to gather vital insights and foster dialogue. By amplifying the voices of these communities to decision-makers, CST members helped shape more informed, culturally sensitive operations, ensuring that local perspectives were heard and respected. Their efforts not only improved mission outcomes but also empowered Afghan women, highlighting the importance of inclusive engagement in conflict zones. #Empowerment#CommunityVoices#AfghanistanVOICE360 Afghanistan
Retired Police Officer, Veteran Advocate, Documentary Film Producer & Author of the books, "The Giant Killer" and "Giant Killers, War Heroes & Special Forces Legends"
Lest We Forget...
Lt. Ashley White lost her life in Afghanistan when insurgent forces detonated an Improvised Explosive Device killing her, and two US Army Rangers; Kristoffer Domeij and Christopher Horns. Lt. White served in a critical role as a cultural support team member. She helped shield Afghan women and children from exposure to the effects of war.
She accompanied special operations forces on direct action missions to kill and capture members of insurgent networks- a mission that is inherently dangerous.
#Army#USArmy#Womeninthemilitary#History#Armyrangers
The main purpose and outcome of war, Elaine Scarry famously wrote, is injury. However, despite this ugly fact, there is more to war than pain and suffering. In this special issue, we invite anthropologists and other scholars using ethnographic methods to discuss and theorise (lived) experiences and representations of war as pleasurable.
We invite contributions based on ethnographic or other qualitative research methods that offer novel ways of understanding war and warfighting through the lens of pleasure. We particularly encourage papers analysing the affective experiences and narratives of veterans, active-duty members of the armed forces, private military contractors, paramilitaries and other militants (‘foreign fighters’, ‘insurgents’, ‘rebels’, etc.) but also welcome studies of war correspondents, humanitarian workers, researchers and others who find pleasures in war zones.
More information here: https://lnkd.in/gEm2kwaF
Episode 38 with Willy Pascua is now available here 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ecJhTb5H
Some key takeaways:
*Early experiences and relationships play a significant role in shaping a person's #character and values.
*Military service, particularly in special operations, involves a unique set of #challenges and #sacrifices.
*The most significant aspect of military service is the relationships formed.
*Balancing multiple #roles and #identities can be difficult for service members, and transitioning out of the military presents its own challenges.
*#Faith and family can provide support and guidance during difficult times. Knowing who you are internally and eternally is important for moving forward towards your #purpose.
*Living out your identity is best expressed in #relationship with others.
Bushnell's self-immolation is having a huge ripple effect in the veteran and American military community - a group that can actually change things if they organized. (It's happened before, as I noted weeks ago when the US military revolted after WWII when called to oppose independence in the Philippines). Among the countless others stepping up is:
"...Alan Shebaro. I was with the 3rd Special Forces Group. I was with the Commanders in Extremis Force in the B23. I was a sniper, an assaulter, and a breacher. I did three rotations: 2008, 2009, and 2007.
I know war.
What is going on in Palestine right now is not a war.
It is the dehumanization. It's the genocide. It's the ethnic cleansing of a specific people to take their land. This is wrong. And there's nothing more American than speaking out against what's wrong.
The US taxpayer is paying for this, which makes it even more frustrating. This needs to stop
Whatever you can do, anything, this needs to stop."
#gazagenocide#veteransupport#veteranshelpingveterans#veterans#israelpalestineconflict#Gaza#militarylife#military
The State of Southeast Asia Survey conducted by the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore indicates an increase in China's favorability among Southeast Asian nations, attributed to the ongoing benefits derived from the Belt and Road initiative. Authored by Anshika Singh for Covering China
Parent: THE GEOSTRATA#china#usa#Jinping#biden#bri#military#army#peace#israe
I don’t have the answers, intelligence, analysis. I support #Israel. And: I believe in people speaking up, and us having these conversations. I believe #bringthemhomenow#bringthemhome & have blue ribbons, three, hanging in our front yard.
I also don’t again, have all the info, but do believe, well, believe they are looking at the options, and, that speaking up matters, maybe can yield new solutions that help Israelis & Palestinians if we keep the focus there, pressure #Hamas to return the hostages with that? I don’t have all the answers.
I don’t think Israel is waging a genocide.
And: I think speaking up matters. Want to live in that world, hope this ripples out globally and we stop all the wars.
I am #Jewish, do not believe it’s a genocide, support Israel and its right to exist, and, don’t know here, as well, unless you are making those decisions, you wouldn’t have the information, but I believe in us speaking up.
I don’t understand why cities are making resolutions; letters, protests, shows of solidarity, yes, and the resolutions, what those mean?, have fear come up when I see people saying we have this resolution without intelligence/what does that mean, as someone who is Jewish, by ancestry.
And; I want there to be a way. Want to say that, too. Keep the thought, energy there, of trying, and that Hamas can no longer exist as an organization, given the terror focus, horror.
Think about it all the time. I wonder if there could be a pocket created for people to go while tunnels are searched: do not believe in this case that is genocide, though get the fear. Bosnia. ? That wasn’t even a pocket/idea of leaving. Japanese internment - not the same, but have read fears people would turn on each other which, ? Would that have happened?
And, here, Gaza, terrorists hiding as civilians, in ambulances.
I think about the hostage what I want like a child to be killed for them to get me out or would I want to die? I don’t know and I also know it’s it’s not even about just that it’s not OK ongoing attack. Israel protecting itself, a state doing so -
I don’t know but my heart is there, for Israel and Gaza, West Bank, Palestinians.
I do t have children, either. Think of, again, I don’t know, but, think caring matters. People caring. Believe in God, energy, consciousness, that that caring, by Israel, Palestine, the world, matters. The rest, people know more.
I know energy in my own way, study, feel, we all do. Believe in to 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 heal, yield solutions. 🙏🏻🙏🏻 prayer
And asking people if they are Jewish, Muslim, everyone, how they are doing - I know I’ve been feeling a lot emotionally and I read people, energy, and I’m not the only one. Always am not, but it’s felt pretty intense for a while, and this is when we can dig in and say we feel too, vs division, in believing that
I don’t know, but am thinking of all.
#amyisraelchai and #peace two states 🙏🏻
🙏🏻🇮🇱🇵🇸✌🏻🙏🏻
Bushnell's self-immolation is having a huge ripple effect in the veteran and American military community - a group that can actually change things if they organized. (It's happened before, as I noted weeks ago when the US military revolted after WWII when called to oppose independence in the Philippines). Among the countless others stepping up is:
"...Alan Shebaro. I was with the 3rd Special Forces Group. I was with the Commanders in Extremis Force in the B23. I was a sniper, an assaulter, and a breacher. I did three rotations: 2008, 2009, and 2007.
I know war.
What is going on in Palestine right now is not a war.
It is the dehumanization. It's the genocide. It's the ethnic cleansing of a specific people to take their land. This is wrong. And there's nothing more American than speaking out against what's wrong.
The US taxpayer is paying for this, which makes it even more frustrating. This needs to stop
Whatever you can do, anything, this needs to stop."
#gazagenocide#veteransupport#veteranshelpingveterans#veterans#israelpalestineconflict#Gaza#militarylife#military
Thank you for sharing this powerful perspective.
The experiences of Vietnam veterans highlight the lasting impacts of combat on mental health.
It’s crucial to recognize and support the challenges veterans face long after they leave the battlefield.
PTSD isn’t just a military issue—it’s a human issue that demands understanding and action.
By listening to these stories, we honor their service and learn valuable lessons for the future.
Question for the readers: How can we better support veterans in transitioning back to civilian life?
#VeteranSupport#MentalHealthAwareness#PTSD
Retired Police Officer, Veteran Advocate, Documentary Film Producer & Author of the books, "The Giant Killer" and "Giant Killers, War Heroes & Special Forces Legends"
Read the introduction of Chris Kolenda's book, Zero-Sum Victory. This is the first piece of military scholarship I have approached. It's very well sourced and written, but very very dry.
Think of an everyday round of fisticuffs: two people throw down. One person kicks the other person's ass and makes the defeated the victor's bitch.
Apparently, this line of reasoning does not work so well for counterinsurgencies. Think Vietnam, Afghanistan, or Iraq.
The book seems to be a comprehensive study of the subject, but us simple people should know:
1) War fighting is a military thing
2) War waging is a whole-of-government thing that includes nice things like ending wars
We are good at 1 but suck at 2 for various reasons
Founder@ British Army Spouses from Commonwealth Countries Hub, Veteran's Spouse, Adult Safeguardng Practitioner, Social Worker,ASC Research Champion @ BCP,Co-author.
Hilary Engward Anglia Ruskin. While writing my MSc dissertation in 2022, I grappled with the term ‘Commonwealth personnel.’ Instead, I found it more fitting to refer to refer myself as a ‘spouse of a Zimbabwean-born personnel serving in the British Army.’ I had hoped that the government’s replacement of ‘Foreign & Commonwealth personnel’ with ‘Non-UK serving personnel’ and ‘Non-UK veterans’ would be more inclusive, but it has proven otherwise. These labels inadvertently create division within the organisation.
In reality, anyone serving in the British Army, regardless of their place of birth, is a British Army serving personnel or veteran —period. Rather than using terms like ‘Commonwealth’ or ‘non-UK’ to describe people, let’s recognize all service members as part of the same organisation. By emphasizing unity over division, we can foster a more cohesive and supportive environment within the British Army.
Promoting inclusivity and acknowledging the shared commitment of all personnel will undoubtedly strengthen our collective resolve.
let's keep fighting for a better world 🌎 🙏
Empowering Mid-Career Professionals | Founder of LTL Academy & Op Belonging | 4 x Career Transition Books | From Soldier to Scholar | Mission to develop talented individuals who become influential leaders.
Over 100,000 Gurkhas and Commonwealth citizens have served in the British Armed Forces, with 6,000 still serving and living in England, Wales & Scotland with their families. The government has replaced the term 'Foreign & Commonwealth personnel' with the label 'Non-UK personnel' and 'Non-UK veterans', which diminishes our unique identity and sense of belonging. Serving in the British Armed Forces requires us to live a life with very little separation between life and work, where everybody relies on each other – prepared if necessary to lay down our lives for the man or woman next to us in the fight, as well as our families, unit and country.
The label 'Non-UK' fails to acknowledge our sacrifices and contributions throughout history, erases the rich heritage and camaraderie shared among British, Commonwealth, and Allied forces, and reduces the importance of feeling like we belong to the country we serve and have sacrificed our lives for. This labelling affects individuals and their families, fostering a sense of isolation and detachment from our heritage and service.
If you haven't signed it yet, you can do so by visiting: https://chng.it/zgybrNWcsB
This will hugely help with the ongoing work being done in the background to right this wrong. Thank you.
#Gurkhas#Commonwealth#OPBELONGING#military#britisharmy
