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Angry Vets Expose New Jersey Job Fair As A "Sham"

By VVAW

On August 18th, the American Legion, VA, and New Jersey Alliance of Businessmen help a "job's fair" for veterans in Middlesex County, New Jersey. It was a feeble attempt to make the Legion and the VA come off like they were fighting in the interests of vets, but the 100-125 vets who came quickly learned better. Thirty to forty area plants were there; most of them had been laying off workers for some time. One company offered future "prospects" a $3.25 per hour. And, of course, the military recruiters were there, doing no business at all, even though they were the only "company" with immediate jobs to offer.

The anger of the vets who came to the "fair" forced the "dignitaries" to tone down some of their normal garbage--the local mayor, talking about the hundreds of thousands of vets out of work, said he would be glad if 10% could find jobs. The regional VA director bragged at length about his triumph in finding 3 vets a 3 day job in a movie being filmed nearby.

The fact that the "fair" was help at an American Legion post underlined the task of the Legion leadership in using whatever tactic the can try to mobilize vets, and particularly Vietnam vets, behind their banners to support rich men's wars and red, white and blue patriotism. They play on the real needs of vets for jobs and offer nothing.

Vets, who had come in hopes of finding a job, weren't interested at all in another bureaucratic runaround. They were mad--when the Northern New Jersey Chapter of VVAW, along with people from the Unemployed Workers Organizing Committee and New York City VVAW, talked with them, they eagerly signed the Extend and Expand the GI Bill petition, over half of them bought copies of the paper, and many of them wanted to know more about VVAW and particularly how they could join the campaign around the GI Bill and fighting for Jobs or Income Now.