A federal judge has temporarily blocked the current administration’s attempt to deploy the National Guard to Chicago, issuing a restraining order amid mounting protests. Yet even as the courts press pause, the threat of militarizing our streets looms.
But there’s another side to that story, and it’s one I’ve come to know through more than a decade of research on mental health among service members and veterans. Deploying the guard in this way not only harms communities, but it also harms the people who wear the uniform.
National Guard members aren’t full-time soldiers. They are our neighbors. They are firefighters, nurses, teachers — each living, working and raising their kids in the same communities they might be ordered to patrol. Most joined to help in times of disaster or national defense, not to enforce political power over civilians.
When they’re ordered to do so, it can cause what psychologists and veterans alike call moral injury — a deep wound to a person’s sense of right and wrong.
Moral injury is distint from trauma. It happens when deeply held beliefs are violated. This is when service members are asked to act against their conscience, or when leaders betray the principles they pledged to uphold. For service members, moral injury can manifest as guilt, shame, anger, or loss of trust.
This demoralization has been linked to mental health problems like depression and anxiety, substance use and even suicide. It’s a silent kind of pain. Invisible, but profound.
The guard is made up of citizen-soldiers, straddling two worlds: civilian and military, neighbor and enforcer. That dual role is what makes them invaluable, but it’s also what makes politically driven deployments so damaging.
National Guard members deserve better. They deserve missions that align with their purpose — protecting life, not intimidating the public.
Cities like Chicago don’t need military interventions. What they need are investments in the systems that keep communities safe and strong: education, jobs, housing and health care.
So when you hear, “Send in the troops,” remember who those troops are. They didn’t sign up to patrol their own neighbors. They signed up to protect them, all of us.
Rachel Hoopsick, assistant professor of epidemiology and Public Voices fellow, University of Illinois.
Statehood for Puerto Rico
Hispanic Heritage Month commemorates the contributions Latinos have made and keep making to the U.S. In the Chicago area, where nearly 30% of city residents are Latino and almost 200,000 Puerto Ricans reside, it is a time of cultural celebration. Communities surrounding Chicago, including mine in Naperville, share this proud Hispanic heritage.
Yet, as we celebrate, there are 3.2 million Hispanic U.S. citizens being subjugated to second-class status in the unincorporated territory of Puerto Rico. The island’s modern-day colonial status results in a lack of voting representation in Washington, D.C., and could be immediately resolved through statehood, benefiting U.S. citizens on the island and the U.S. economy. Despite the reality that statehood would benefit the people of Puerto Rico and the mainland U.S., our Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill, remain silent on the issue when their support is needed more than ever.
Unlike U.S. citizens in the 50 states, Puerto Rican residents who are U.S. citizens cannot vote for president. They are also denied voting representation in Congress. Consequently, Puerto Rico is treated unequally under federal programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, receiving less support than every state.
The effects of this second-class citizenship are devastating and restrain Puerto Rico from reaching its true economic potential by creating persistent uncertainty, underinvestment and an unequal playing field for economic competition. Hundreds of thousands of Puerto Ricans, including many right here in Chicago, have moved to the mainland in search of the opportunities and the rights they lacked on the island.
All of these reasons are why Puerto Rican residents have voted repeatedly to become the 51st state, with last year’s results showing more than 58% voted for statehood to resolve the island’s status issue.
Hispanic Heritage Month shines a light on the unfair reality the U.S. citizens of Puerto Rico live under every day. To many, this may seem like a distant issue. But to the millions of Puerto Ricans living throughout the U.S., the call for statehood is deeply personal. No U.S. citizen should be denied fundamental democratic rights because of where they live. My friends and family in Puerto Rico deserve to be heard in Congress, and Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin must support ending colonialism by supporting legislation that would create a legally binding vote in Puerto Rico that offers a pathway to statehood.
Jeffrey Floresca, Naperville
More air traffic controllers needed
The Sun-Times story last week headlined “O’Hare flights delayed as government shutdown hits staffing” is yet another reminder that the federal shutdown is striking our aviation system while it’s still on its knees.
Chicago’s airports already face a severe air traffic controller shortage following years of neglect under Joe Biden’s former Transportation Chief Pete Buttigieg, with staffing hovering well below the federal government’s own targets. Now, with controllers forced to work with partial pay — for now — and training programs that are helping to backfill positions put on pause, delays and disruptions will only deepen for the city’s more than 250,000 daily passengers.
A long-term funding solution that supports air traffic controller training would insulate critical aviation staffing from partisan squabbles. But until then, Congress must act swiftly to get the government running again.
Jackson Shedelbower, executive director, The Center for Transportation Policy, Arlington, Virginia
Be like Sister Jean
Lately, whenever I read about the latest incidents involving immigrants, I think; “If only Donald Trump could be more like Sister Jean.”
Steve Herr, West Ridge