Mission

The purpose of Alternatives to Militarism through Information and Empowerment (AMIE) is to end militarism through counseling and support for individual and collective action and advocacy.  We are located in Oakland, California.

We provide information to youth who are targeted by the military and to people already in the military so that they can make informed decisions about entering or staying in the military and about obtaining redress for violations of their rights and their persons.

We provide information and support for veterans of the military to help them obtain proper compensation for their service and heal from experiences in while in the military.

We believe that the people we serve are able to make good decisions for themselves when they have the necessary information and support; our goal is to support them in this by providing accurate and timely information as well as support and advocacy for the decisions that they make.

Projects

GI Rights Hotline Oakland

We belong to a network of nonprofit, nongovernmental organizations who provide information to servicemembers.  Call us at 877-447-4487 for information, support and advocacy about issues such as

• military discharges
• grievance and complaint procedures
• sexual harassment and assault
• racial harassment
• harassment of gays, lesbians, and bisexual people by the military
• Other civil rights matters for people in the military

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Many people who call us have returned from war and as a result have PTSD.  In many cases, they also face being forced to return to war. We have had trainings in working with soldiers with PTSD, and continue to try to offer both quality direct counseling and referrals for these GIs for help with PTSD.

Counter Recruitment

We hear from our GI callers the aftermath of the false promises of recruiters:  young soldiers traumatized as early as boot camp or basic training, who were misled by recruiters about what they were getting into.

We get many calls from people who are still in Delayed Enlistment Program (DEP) and are still civilians.  We offer them the information and support needed for them to change their previous intention to join the military.  This is something they can do quite easily in spite of frequent threats from recruiters.

We share office space with Bay-Peace ('Bay' stands for 'Better Alternatives for Youth').  This is a group of young people and adults offering alternatives and information to young people barraged by those carrying out the military's multibillion recruiting budget.

Services for Women Soldiers and Vets 

We are developing resources for the women in the military who are sexually assaulted and harassed by members of the military or have otherwise suffered trauma as a result of their experience in the military.

Veterans Support

We offer callers who are veterans referrals to non-governmental groups such as Swords to Plowshares, who are veterans' advocates.  We are working to be in a position to provide more counseling ourselves for veterans dealing with VA benefits, PTSD, etc.

Conscientious Objection/GI Resistance

We assist GIs who are opposed to the war-making policies of the US government, and work with them on deciding whether to file a claim for conscientious objection. If they decide to do so, we give them feedback on their written application and help them with the various steps of the CO process.

If GIs we speak to are interested in resisting the war publicly, we assist as counselors b providing information about their options and potential consequences.  We also refer them to groups such as Courage to Resist that support GI Resisters.  Some individual GI Rights counselors are active in this support work outside of their role as counselors with the Hotline.