WHY IS THIS STORY IMPORTANT?

"Boys with a normal viewpoint were taken from the fields and offices and factories and classrooms and put into the ranks. There they were remolded; they were made over; they were made to 'about face,' to regard murder as the order of the day. They were put shoulder to shoulder, and through mass psychology they were entirely changed. We used them for a couple of years and trained them to think nothing at all of killing or being killed. Then suddenly, we discharged them and told them to make another 'about face.' This time they had to do their own readjusting without mass psychology, without officers' aid and advice, without nation-wide propaganda. We didn't need them any more. So we scattered them about without any speeches or parades. Many, too many, of these fine young boys are eventually destroyed mentally, because they could not make that final 'about face' alone."

-Smedley D. Butler, Major General, USMC - 1936

THE NUMBERS:

Since October 2001, approximately 1.64 million U.S. troops have deployed as part of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF; Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF; Iraq). The pace of the deployments in these current conflicts is unprecedented in the history of the all-volunteer force.

There are an estimated 1.1 million military caregivers who are family member, friend, or acquaintance (Hidden Heroes) in the United States caring for post-9/11 veterans. They tend to be younger, caring for a younger individual with a mental health or substance use condition, employed, and not connected to a support network.

At least 20% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have PTSD and/or Depression. The number climbs higher when combined with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

19% of veterans may have traumatic brain injury (TBI) & 50% of those with PTSD do not seek treatment.

WHAT'S NEXT:

The Homemade Team is in the process of implementing a broad distribution strategy combining premieres at strategic film festivals to garner visibility and media attention with community impact screenings to reach audiences all over the Nation.

Our website will be our digital platform with easy to access resources such as a step-by-step guide to hosting a screening, viewer discussion guides, additional videos, educational downloads, and social media engagement tools.

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