GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICAN CITIES, A PROPOSAL

An American ‘Foreign Legion’?

Like many cities in the US, Portland, Oregon (near my home) is suffering from a plague of gun violence that is mainly a function of gang activity, but is also a manifestation of personal grudges generated by ‘disrespect’ expressed in Social Media posts, street confrontations or word-of-mouth. Arguments over virtually anything can generate shooting incidents since (primarily) young men are peer-pressured into taking revenge as violently as possible. Guns are, of course, easily available.

So far, community efforts here and elsewhere to find a solution have been very ineffective. Deaths in the thousands nationwide have been the result.

I’ve thought about a solution that would be based on the theory that removing young men from urban neighborhoods would have a huge impact on the problem. That sounds like a ‘duh’ idea, with no feasible legal way to accomplish such a sweeping-of-the-streets, so to speak.

I propose borrowing an idea from the French, namely, their ‘Foreign Legion’ military units. The FFL was formed in the mid-19^th Century as a military force whose main function was to protect French interests in that nation’s far flung colonial empire. Its members were predominantly non-French citizens who joined for money, adventure, travel and/or the potential to hide from a sordid past. It was nevertheless a part of the French Army, but could be used more cavalierly since the blood spilled would not, for the most part, be French.

My version would be 100% American (with the one exception being legal or illegal immigrants), and would essentially be an armed ‘Peace Corps’, but on steroids. More on that to follow.

So, how does this ‘Legion’ sweep the streets of the dysfunctional young urban men who are shooting up our cities?

1st, recruiting advertisements would be directed at the young men causing the problem. Pay, benefits and adventure would be the prime draw. But an unspoken and obvious benefit would be the potential recruits having a chance to escape a dangerous and boring urban existence.

2^nd, the Criminal Justice System would be asked to assist in the following manner: If a non-violent offender is going to be incarcerated or put on probation, that person is offered the opportunity to join the Legion for the same term as their sentence or probation plus the Legion’s training period plus one year. Violate that, and it’s back to the Criminal Justice System with no credit for time away.

 3^rd, individuals (again, non-violent offenders) who are currently incarcerated or on probation could be released into the Legion to serve the balance of their sentences/probation plus Legion training period plus one year. Violate that, and it’s back to the CJS with no credit for time away.

Why would a young man (not including those in jail) pick the Legion instead of the regular military?

1^st. Recruits would not need to meet the stringent enlistment requirements of, say, the US Army, e.g. high school diploma, physical fitness, adequate test scores on entrance tests, etc. The ‘Legion’ would accept nearly anyone, presuming they had the basic intelligence to occupy some Legion job. Physical fitness would be important, but being able to perform a job would be paramount.

2^nd. The Legion would not be a ‘Combat’ unit, e.g. its function would be altruistic assistance to Third World populations that have invited the Legion into their countries. It would be armed, but for defense only.

3^rd. Enlistments would not be of a set duration, say, 3 or 4 years as the traditional services require. A recruit could stay as long as they serve effectively with their unit, or leave whenever they want. Such early departures would have monetary consequences as a deterrent e.g. pay accumulates in a Legionnaire’s account until his unit returns to American soil. Quit, and some pay is forfeited.

4^th. Obviously, incarcerated or probationized individuals would not be welcome in the traditional military. Were they to serve honorably in the Legion, it could serve as a ‘cleansing’ pathway into the military should they wish to go that route at some future date.

So, I mentioned the Legion as the Peace Corps on steroids. Here’s a mission I see the Legion conducting. Assume a Sub-Saharan African nation’s population is suffering from drought. The US government offers that nation a Legion unit that will build a desalinization plant to provide fresh water to local farmers. “Great,” says the host nation, “but we have a guerilla group in the area and can’t guarantee their safety.” That's where the ‘steroids’ come in. The Legion will be an armed unit, capable of defending itself. It will take casualties. It would not be equipped for offensive operations, but would be adequately armed for its own defense. Regular US military units would be on-call should the Legion come under heavier assault than their weaponry can handle.

Or how about a Central American country asking our State Department for help with a highway between two important towns? Bandits have prevented free passage on the current dirt road, not to mention disrupting repairs. A Legion unit is deployed to build the highway and defend its construction workers during the project. Possibly the Legion could maintain local freedom of movement as long as they’re welcome in the host country. Again, it’s the ‘turn-key’ aspect of doing a job and providing its own security that makes the Legion appropriate.

Thus, the Legion would be a construction unit (think the Navy’s ‘Seabees’) but with its own protection. The recruits who join the Legion would be trained to operate heavy equipment, vehicles, welders, generators, not to mention the picks and shovels of micro labor. If they prefer, they could select the armed component in lieu of the construction side, or alternate between as the missions allow. Of necessity they’d need to be trained in light weapons use and care. As in Army/Marine Infantry units, weapons training is a right-of-passage and imparts to the individuals a huge dose of espirit de corps and self-esteem.

Where would they be trained? Pick a community that has suffered due to the closure of a military base. The facility need not, and should not, be new and state-of-the-art. Think the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) model of the 1930s. Old wooden barracks and dusty streets are fine. Large lots for driving D-8 Caterpillar tractors, road graders and dump trucks will be needed as will ranges for rifles, machine guns and grenade launchers. Should a community be unsettled by the proximity of young men, some of whom from the Criminal Justice world, being trained with weapons, emphasize the Legion’s structure, raison d’etre and invite them to tour the base. Indeed, an ideal situation would be for the community to ‘adopt’ the camp and its trainees. Imagine young men from hostile ghettos in large cities coming in contact with small town American warmth and hospitality. Naïve? I don’t think so. Also emphasize that weaponry is only employed for self-defense once the Legion is deployed on foreign soil.

The Legion’s status as a non-‘force-projection’ component of the US military could make it more politically correct for host governments. After all, many nations including the Chinese, Russians, Saudis, etc. are providing such services to underdeveloped countries around the world, although with ulterior nationalistic motives.

This Legion structure would, first and foremost, be to help Americans, but would be directed where the unit’s efforts would be most needed by those populations in need.

How would it be paid for? Take money from the current Foreign Aid budget, ask host countries to contribute, make the Legion a cause that Americans would support by specific bond purchases. Funding ideas could fill a page.

Now, such a unit would need leadership that would combine a traditional Drill Sergeant with Prison Guard and Probation Officer; a very tough position to fill. However, I’ve no doubt there would be ample, qualified applicants for all positions given the number of Iraq and Afghan veterans in the population that are un or under-employed. If the French could make their Legion work, we should have no problem.

How large would the Legion be? I’d suggest roughly 10,000 Legionnaires to be divided into Brigades, Battalions and Companies that would be deployed based on the job at hand. Imagine the effect on the crime and shooting stats for major cities if, say, 10,000 late-teen to 20-something men are no longer loitering, gang-banging and gathering without hope of jobs or, indeed, any constructive activity. They’ve wasted their high school years, many barely literate, and haven’t the vaguest idea how to prepare for or even apply for employment. Then one day, they’re offered a way out via a unique American Experiment patterned on the French Foreign Legion. Once trained, Legion members leave US soil for the duration of their service, returning only for annual leaves, if they choose. Otherwise, they can take their time off wherever their money (dispensed specifically for that event) will take them.

Imagine these same young men returning to their homes at some point with such vast experience gained then trickling back into those communities. Eventually, there’d be a cultural shift that could transform and rejuvenate entire sub-sets of our population. Thoughts?