Please click here to sign the petition for the Veteran's Bill of Rights

Dear Honorable Senators and Members of Congress,

  We would like to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves; we are a team of Advanced Placement Government and Dowling Political Science students from Lindenhurst High School. Our class is in the process of creating a piece of legislation that will expand and enhance the rights afforded to veterans. This Veterans Bill of Rights will give military veterans the benefits they deserve for laying their lives on the line for us and for protecting the rights that we ourselves enjoy every day. We should reward our veterans for their hard work and dedication to our country and we should allow them to make the transition back into American society an easy one. Veterans should be given the opportunity to receive a free undergraduate education after service at the education establishment of their choice and/or job training unrelated to the service. Veterans should all be eligible for on going independent confidential physiological evaluation to determine their ability to assimilate back into society upon return from deployment. They should also be allowed extensive therapy with an independent therapist of their choosing    to help them deal with the stress and trauma brought on by combat. We must insure that no veteran comes home from their service overseas, and having nowhere to live, they are forced to live in the street as vagrants. We must insure that they have adequate funds to be able to afford adequate housing. Our veterans deserve to be honored for the services they perform in the military, both at home and abroad, they should not be treated as second class criticizes, or have to wait a year or two for the rights that the current GI Bill offers them to take effect.

 This is the time to fix problems in the system and give our veterans caring first class treatment. It is the least we can do for them after all the things that they have been through and all the things they have seen while in service. To emphasize our commitment and sincerity we have several runners embarking on a journey from Central Park, New York City to Washington DC. These men are willing to run over 250 miles because they believe in the Veterans Bill of Rights. When we arrive to present our legislation we will be there cheering on these brave souls for the last leg of their journey. This is of the utmost importance and we hope you feel the same way. We hope that we will have your support in turning the dream of a small high school class into a reality that we can all benefit from.

 

Sincerely,

Advanced Placement Government and Dowling Political

 Science Students of Lindenhurst High School