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- iHaveNet.com: Politics
by Arianna Huffington
April 18, 2011
Talk about letting bygones be bygones: Less than a year after President Obama relieved him of his command, the
Dubbed "Joining Forces," the program was officially announced this week by Michelle Obama and Jill Biden -- whose husband McChrystal famously mocked by saying, "Who's that?"
But that was then and this is now -- a time to, as the first lady put it, "build upon our nation's great patriotism by asking all Americans to take action and ensure our military families have the support they have earned."
Joining Forces hopes to inspire businesses, nonprofit groups and faith-based communities to make an extra effort when it comes to helping military families.
America has been a nation at war for nearly a decade -- longer than any time in our history. But because the fighting is being done by a tiny percentage of our citizens -- all of whom volunteered -- it's been far too easy to keep their struggles at arm's length. And it's even easier to forget about the hardships endured by the families they leave behind.
That's why we made this Military Families Week at
On our sites we are featuring stories all week that focus on the issues that most impact military families, including health care, substance abuse, education, mental health and unemployment.
In addition to the built-in hardships faced by military families, a sputtering economy and an extremely difficult job market create special challenges for the spouses of our soldiers. As HuffPost's David Wood reports, the average military family moves every 2.9 years, labor markets around military bases are often weak and even if you can find work, keeping a full-time job isn't easy when you are raising a family by yourself. That's why the unemployment rate for military spouses is much higher than it is for women in civilian families.
"It is difficult -- you are constantly moving so having a career is extremely hard," says Kristy Kaufmann, the wife of an
To help lessen that challenge, AOL Jobs is running a number of stories focused on helping vets and military families find work. The section also offers career counseling and information on accreditation programs, returning to school, the top employers of veterans and making the transformation from military service to the civilian workforce.
Other sections are featuring coverage of issues affecting military families. To name just a few: Impact looks at the plight of homeless female vets, and features blog posts from veterans and veteran advocates; Education explores the specific challenges faced by children of soldiers; Black Voices features blog posts by various chapters of Tuskegee Airmen; and Divorce explores the reasons behind the higher divorce rates of military women.
And, most important, we are encouraging everyone who reads these stories to take action and get involved. All week we are highlighting organizations and nonprofits that make it easy to give a little back to those who have sacrificed so much for us, including Challenge America, Operation Shower, Cell Phones for Soldiers, Fisher House, Operation Homefront, Soldiers' Angels, and IAVA, the USO,
As the first lady said in a ceremony honoring the Military Child of the Year, "Our message is very clear: It's that every American has the ability -- and the obligation -- to give something back to our military families."
Watching the
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Putting the Spotlight on the Sacrifices of Those Left Behind | Politics
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